It’s that time of year and the St. Charles Service Center kicked off the awards season with their volunteer recognition event last Friday….congrats to Brad, Cheryl, TJ, volunteer resources and planning committee for putting on yet another great luncheon event with hundreds of volunteers to honor.  The event also doubled as a Mayor’s convention…as there must have been every Mayor in the St. Charles County area (no kidding!)  I think this is a great testimony to how important partnerships are to the Red Cross and community.

Also, I heard the Red Cross Live! Event in Metro East was a huge success at the local fire house with 25 guests, including the Mayor of Belleville.  What a great opportunity for the Metro East area to see the Red Cross in action. Congrats to Sandy and team!

On Thursday afternoon I had the privilege, along with Nicole and Katie to present to the VA clients of the Homeless Domiciliary Program (or “Dom” for short) a flat screen TV, DVD, Xbox and other important components…..  You would have thought that we had given them a million dollars with all the excitement.  One of the clients shared with the audience how they have been using the media center and their appreciation for the kind gift.  Hopefully, these items will brighten someone’s day when they really need it as they work through this intense program.  I know it brightened mine!

Cindy Erickson is the chief executive officer of the St. Louis Area Chapter.