"She’s just a sweetheart all the time, and to everybody she meets,” Dave Warner says of his wife, and Red Cross partner, Claudia. “And so that kind of endears me to her.”
Good friends are hard to come by. But a perfect partner? Even harder. Fortunately, Dave and Claudia Warner would end up with both after being set up in 1979.
“They were telling me that I needed to meet her, and she needed to meet me,” remarked Dave as both beamed at the memory. “And so, they got us at places where we saw each other before we actually met the first time.”
A dash of meet-cute magic here, a sprinkle of scheduling by mutual friends there and poof! The pair hit it off.
While sparks flew, skepticism trailed closely behind; both had previously been married and had children. But love waits for no one, and they quickly fell for each other.
“Going through a divorce, you have different things you look for in somebody, and he embodied all of the wonderful things I was looking for,” Claudia said.
Soon after their marriage, a new love blossomed in the form of a blended family. Dave and Claudia would go on to have two more children, raising six kids altogether.
“My children say that we are a successful family because we don't have any ‘halfs’, or ‘steps, or anything,” Claudia said. “Everybody is brother and sister, and they treat each other that way.”
Through the years, their family bond would only grow stronger. So when Claudia’s brother, an airman who worked in security forces, shared worries about threats that could cut contact between relatives, everyone stopped to listen.
“He wanted us to have good communication with the family in case things didn't go too well,” Claudia said.
The Warners got to work. They learned how to use HAM radios, received their licenses and created a communication plan from there. Their family would stay dialed in and connected during any catastrophe in the future, no matter where. But the couple realized their equipment could do a world of good for California communities in the present.
“We need to find something else to do with these expensive toys that we have,” Dave remembered saying.
The duo joined San Diego County’s CERT, or Community Emergency Response Team. The program would eventually present an opportunity to join the Red Cross in order to prepare an emergency shelter in their community.
That shelter was never needed while they lived in California, but the pair’s time and talents were immediately put to good work after moving to Idaho Falls.
“We learned very quickly that Idaho needed a whole lot more help than San Diego did,” she said.
The Warners sprang into action, bringing their knowledge of emergency preparedness to every Red Cross disaster response and hosting preparedness fairs.
They also started and manage Bonneville County’s CERT team. Claudia is also president of Eastern Idaho VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disasters).
“So, it just keeps us busy and out of trouble while we’re retired,” they chuckled.
The Red Cross disaster action coordinators say they are almost always a package deal when responding to calls.
“It makes it a lot easier on the duty officer,” he said. “They call one place and if they get me, then they've got her and if they get her, then they've got me.”
Caring for communities has become a natural part of caring for each other; things they love about one another have strengthened their disaster casework.
“Well, for me, I think it's his patience with me and his thoughtfulness,” Claudia said.
“And she's just the sweetheart all the time, and to everybody that she meets,” Dave continued. “And so, that kind of endears her to me.”
Dealing with tragedies takes a toll on everyone, which is why they’re glad to have each other at the end of the day.
They share this bit of advice to lovebirds, old and new:
Dave: “I would say every day, find the time when you can just watch her for a little while and just appreciate the things that she is and does. And then, remind yourself how lucky you feel. You need to do that. It can’t be just something that is in the back of your mind.”
Claudia said, “Look for the good in your sweetheart and let them know that you love and appreciate them; just thinking it in your head doesn't necessarily relate out. It's something that you've got to express, whether it's physically, you know, a hug, or just saying, ‘I love you’ or ‘thank you’.”
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