Ivan the Terrible is of course getting ready to sock Florida's panhandle, and in the next few days, could pelt New Orleans or drop deadly floodwaters in the coalfields of West Virginia. Doug and Lydia Warren are ready to answer the call.

"When we are called to go in, we are expected to go in with enough food for 20,000 meals," said Doug, a 64-year-old retired New River Community College dean. "We go in pretty self-sufficient. During a disaster, there's no system in place to get the food there immediately."

"You have to wait until they get the trees cut down, clear the roads, have sleeping arrangements for the team," noted 62-year-old Lydia, Doug's wife of 41 years. Waiting, she will tell you, is the hardest part.

The Radford couple - members of the Virginia Baptist Mission Board's feeding unit for disaster relief - has encountered some unusual arrangements in their years as volunteers.

In 1996 when Plattsburg, N.Y., was immobilized by an ice storm, they slept in a university field house. After the 9/11 terrorist bombings in New York City, they dozed in jail cells prepared for relief workers. In Punta Gorda, Fla., last month, they bedded down in a Baptist church.

Hurricane Charley ripped through Florida on Aug. 13. Five days later, the Warrens and 14 other unit volunteers from across Virginia were heading down Interstate 75.

Doug Warren said the damage in Punta Gorda is the worst he's seen as a relief worker.

As the mobile feeding unit entered the destruction zone, pulling trailers of canned goods and cooking equipment, the first thing volunteers noticed was the road signs.

"We started seeing interstate exit signs that looked like yard sale signs," Lydia recalled. Hastily hand-written signs had replaced the twisted chunks of metal that once offered direction to motorists visiting the Sunshine State.

Next came the downed trees, the flattened buildings, the piles of debris. The cleanup was under way.

"Then Frances came in and spread it all back out again," Lydia said.

The Warrens had already left by that point. After 10 days of feeding workers and residents, they came back to Virginia for a break. When Hurricane Frances slammed the state on Sept. 6, volunteers were evacuated and the Warrens were back to waiting.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the couple received word that they won't be going back to Florida any time soon. Instead, they're on alert for whatever disaster response is needed closer to home.

Ivan, it seems, isn't done yet. n n

The Warrens' rescue work began in 1993 when Lydia Warren decided to take advantage of a training course for disaster relief offered through her church, the First Baptist Church of Radford. Her husband, Doug, took the 1 1/2 -day course in 1996 and is now a team leader for his unit with the Virginia Baptist Mission Board.

They've lost count of the number of disaster relief efforts they've assisted.

In 2002 alone, they spent a total of 10 weeks on disaster relief, including the work they did in New York City following the World Trade Center bombing.

"Talk about a challenge ..." Doug Warren groaned, "to have food service on top of a garbage dump."

"... Basically, the Baptist groups do the cooking," he continued, noting that other agencies handle such things as child care, cleanup and even portable shower and laundry service.

In Punta Gorda where hurricane victims were without water, the Warrens saw first-hand how important every aspect of relief work is.

They remember two women who had been standing in sewage, cutting trees with chain saws for several days, who were elated when the portable shower arrived - even though they had to bathe in cold water.

Every disaster, the Warrens point out, is different. Assistance efforts depend on the type of emergency, the needs of the victims and the locality of the disaster. In the 1996 ice storms that hit New York state, coffee was the beverage of choice when temperatures plunged below zero. In Florida's recent sweltering August heat, the big demand was for iced tea.

The key word for volunteers is flexibility, Lydia noted.

Flexibility - and faith.

Volunteers seldom get more than six hours of sleep each day. They deal with a string of emotions.

"People are doing it under the direction of the Lord," Lydia said. "If you're doing it on your own, you couldn't deal with the stress and the hours and the workload."

Still, the Warrens say their work has given them a new perspective on life and taught them that disaster brings out the best in people. It has also changed their priorities.

"Now, I can't imagine watching a hurricane coming in and not getting packed up and ready to go," Lydia said before issuing a warning of her own.

"If you ever go out, you're going to get bitten by the bug."

Volunteers interested in helping with the Virginia Baptist Mission Board's feeding unit can learn more by calling Martha Washington at the board's Richmond headquarters: 800-255-2428, ext. 7274.