Sheila Berns

Like many other county residents, the power to Sheila Berns’ Center Township home blinked off at about 9:20 p.m. on Thursday.

Unlike many other county residents, Berns immediately forgot about her own discomfort and inconvenience and headed off to help others.

Berns, who is a volunteer with the Red Cross and Pennsylvania Volunteers, learned that the Red Cross had placed the Pa. Volunteers on shelter standby.

At dinnertime, the Pa. Volunteers got the go-ahead to set up a shelter at First English Lutheran Church for those without power.

Berns jumped in with both feet, as she did earlier this month at a Red Cross shelter in Florida after Hurricane Michael.

“I don’t like to see people suffer,” Berns said. “If there’s something I can do to help them, I would like to do that.”

She said the event marked the first disaster situation for the Butler-based Pa. Volunteers, which provides ancillary services for responders in an emergency.

“I think we did amazing,” Berns said of the group’s inaugural event. “Everyone there, we were able to provide for. We had no problems.”

Read more about Berns in Tuesday’s Butler Eagle.