Volunteer, give blood, learning lifesaving skills or donate to #help1family on American Red Cross Giving Day
March is Red Cross Month, and the Greater Chesapeake Region of the humanitarian organization asks individuals to be a hero for families in Maryland, Delaware and Virginia by becoming a volunteer, learning lifesaving skills, giving blood or donating to #help1family on Red Cross Giving Day, March 27, 2019.
“During Red Cross Month, we are proud to recognize our volunteers who provide hope and urgent relief to families in need every day,” said American Red Cross Greater Chesapeake Region CEO Scott R. Salemme. “These heroes are our neighbors who give blood, save lives with skills like first aid and CPR, or provide care and comfort to families devastated by crises like home fires. We honor our volunteers and ask you to join them and make a difference.”
More than 75 years ago, March was first proclaimed Red Cross Month in 1943 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt to raise awareness of the organization and its humanitarian mission. All U.S. presidents since Roosevelt have designated March as Red Cross Month to recognize how the American Red Cross helps people across the country and around the world through its workforce powered by more than 90 percent volunteers.
Every eight minutes in the U.S., the Red Cross connects with a family who has lost everything to a home fire or other disaster— the roof over their heads, their clothes, and their most cherished possessions. This past year was no exception— and the need continues today.
Last year, Red Cross volunteers helped millions of people reeling from a second consecutive year of record wildfires, hurricanes, tragic shootings and other large disasters across the country. More than 70 volunteer heroes from the Greater Chesapeake Region deployed 103 times, responding to deliver urgent relief and care in people’s darkest hours in the aftermath of Hurricane Lane in Hawaii, Hurricane Florence in the Carolinas, Hurricane Michael in Alabama, Florida and Georgia, and Typhoon Yutu in Saipan. Following the effects of Hurricane Florence in Maryland/Delaware, more than 57 volunteer heroes worked around the clock to deliver urgent relief and care.
This winter, home fires continued to upend lives—when there’s often an increased risk of home heating and cooking fires. Since last fall, local volunteers assisted more than 1,690 people, mostly affected by home fires in the region.
To learn more about how you can help, visit: www.redcross.org/local/maryland-delaware.html.