Volunteering for the Red Cross
12/01/23 17:37
Jan. 12, 2023 (Vol. 17 No. 5) - I have been associated with the American Red Cross since the late 1970s. Back in those days, I was living in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. At first, I served on the "blood committee," mostly because I was news director of the local radio station and my role was to provide publicity for local blood drives. After I left that job to become the public information director of North Carolina Wesleyan College, I took on a more active role. For two years, I served as disaster committee chairman, a role in which I helped develop a disaster response plan that, in turn, made it possible for the chapter to procure its first disaster response van. I was in line to become chapter president when I took a job with the Capitol Broadcasting Company in Raleigh. After that, my active involvement with the Red Cross was put on hold for the next 37 years, After I retired from the School of Journalism faculty at the University of Kansas in 2019, I returned to the Red Cross as a communications volunteer for the Kansas-Oklahoma Region. Because of my association with a former regional communications director who has assumed similar responsibilities in Houston, I am now also a volunteer for the Texas Gulf Coast Region, as well. Volunteering for the Red Cross has been a rewarding experience. First of all, I believe in its mission "to alleviate human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors." Most people don't realize it, but 93 percent of the Red Cross workforce is made of volunteers. And as one considered an expert in crisis communications and internal relations, I can tell you without hesitation that the Red Cross does a fabulous job of encouraging, training and recognizing its volunteer force. There are dozens of role volunteers can fill, from helping with the collection and distribution of 40 percent of the nation's blood supply to responding virtually and/or in-person to a myriad of natural and man-made disasters affecting our fellow citizens every day. If you have time on your hands and like the idea of associating with the world's most respect humanitarian organization, I invite you to visit www.redcross.org/volunteer to learn more. And if you don't have the time to volunteer, I encourage you to give to the Red Cross. An average of 90 cents of every dollar donated is spent serving those in need. For the record: No one asked me to write this blog post. I have done so because I believe in the Red Cross and its mission. I hope you do, too. That's it for now. Fear the Turtle.