But 1989 was when he learned about a branch of the Red Cross he didn't know about before: disaster relief.

That was when the Loma Prieta earthquake struck the Bay Area. Emergency crews were unable to reach Milburn and other residents of the Santa Cruz Mountains due to the closure of Highway 17. So the Red Cross implemented the Mountain Emergency Response Corps. Milburn and his wife, Joann, joined and soon became involved with other Red Cross operations.

On Sept. 4, the retired mechanical engineer returned from Florida, where he and other volunteers were sent to help deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Charley. His commitment ended just before Hurricane Frances hit the state.

Milburn spent three weeks there training volunteers to use a new software program that will assist in interviewing disaster victims. The volunteers use laptop computers when conducting the interviews so that client information can be instantaneously added to a database.

Though he spent most of his time inside a service center conducting the training, Milburn did have contact with people whose homes were damaged or destroyed by the hurricane. Many of them were residents of mobile homes—the only type of housing they can afford.

"It can be a real tear-jerker," he said. "Those people that can least afford this type of damage suffer the most."

Milburn is one of 16 valley residents who were deployed to assist in Florida. Eight, including Los Gatos resident Jan Villemare, are still there.

Santa Clara Valley chapter spokeswoman Cynthia Shaw said there are 400 area residents registered as disaster volunteers. Of those, 61 are from Los Gatos. About 75 people have made themselves available to travel out of the area.

Milburn said he is typically deployed about twice per year. He and his wife have freed themselves of most commitments that could keep them from responding to a disaster call.

"We don't keep pets anymore," he said.

In his 14 years as a volunteer, the worst disaster to which he has responded occurred in his early days of service.

"As far as concentrated devastation, the very worst one I've seen was the Oakland fire," Milburn said of the 1991 firestorm that killed 25 people, destroyed nearly 2,500 single-family homes and caused an estimated $1.5 billion in damage.

Hurricane Charley did its fair share of damage, though. Milburn visited a vacation property in Cape Coral owned by a local Red Cross employee. He took pictures and walked through the home to report back to his colleague. A section of the roof had been torn off, resulting in additional water damage inside the home. Milburn's photographs showed other homes in the same neighborhood that suffered far worse damage, as well as a street sign lying among debris on the ground.

"Here's something you see a lot down there," he said, holding up another picture of a road sign reading "Evacuation Route."

Though it requires a great deal of dedication, Milburn said volunteering with the American Red Cross is quite worth it.

"I'm proud to be a volunteer," he said. "Everything we do is irrespective of financial wherewithal, creed, race—it's all based on your level of need."

He said there are many ways to assist the organization, including volunteering with local administrative tasks or simply making a monetary donation.

But in a few months, should another disaster strike, Milburn will probably pack his bags and head to the scene.

For more information about volunteering with or donating to the American Red Cross disaster relief program, call 800.435.7669 or visit www.redcross.org.