Support Officer Spotlight

Barbara Skudlarick is a natural-born helper. Although she stopped working as an acute-care nurse many years ago, she’s never stopped taking care of people. After leaving her career as a nurse, Skudlarick went to work as a TWA flight attendant for 11 years. She said that even up in the air, "I used my nursing a lot."

Support Officer Community Care has been blessed to have Skudlarick as part of our Family Support Team for around two years. Skudlarick is a member of NADAF -- National Air Disaster Alliance Foundation. Shortly after she retired from TWA she got involved with NADAF because she wanted something to do "besides my garden," she said. She met Support Officer Director Glenn Newton in February 2000 at a community memorial service for Alaska Flight 261 that NADAF members helped conduct at Western Washington University.

"I couldn’t believe the knowledge and cooperation he gave us," Skudlarick said of Newton. Newton stuck her as a "compassionate man with a wonderful temperament," she said. His organizational skills and commitment also impressed her.

Skudlarick decided to contact Newton after she left a volunteer position with the Whatcom County chapter of the American Red Cross. That call was the beginning of Skudlarick’s invaluable role in this program.

"I’ve taken her on some of the toughest calls I’ve ever had and she is amazing," Newton said of Skudlarick, listing death notifications, fatal car wrecks and a child’s murder as examples. "I can take her on anything. You name it; she’s been on it," Newton said.

"I can be plugged in in all sorts of places," Skudlarick agreed. Having successfully handled different crises in her own life, Skudlarick said, she’s better able to help those grieving learn to cope. Skudlarick helps a grieving family come to terms with their grief over the long haul. A support officer typically helps a family in the immediacy of a crisis.

Skudlarick checks up a grieving family for several months after the crisis occurs. Skudlarick’s compassionate care is one of the most complimented components of the Support Officer program. It’s not uncommon to hear a grieving widow or mother marvel that, "Barb still calls to see how I’m doing after all this time."

Skudlarick makes herself available. "People still call and run stuff by me," she said. "I may not have an answer for them, but I’ll find out who to call."

The "huge hearts" of the support officers she’s worked with have impressed Skudlarick. She believes that what makes the program successful is the flexibility of everyone who is involved. Crises, after all, don’t always occur when it’s convenient. "Whatever we’re involved with, we’ll work the disaster into our lives," Skudlarick said.

She also admires the way the Support Officer team supports each other. Following a community crisis response of some magnitude, she said, the group tends to gravitate to a restaurant to share a meal together before they go home.

"It’s like an unspoken thing that happens," she said. There’s "a lot of humor among us," she said, noting that humor returns levity following a particularly heavy event. "They all know. There’s a certain feeling of support."