Hello Red Crossers!
This week is National Volunteer Week (April 10-16), and all over the country, Americans are taking a moment to say “Thank You!” to everyone who gives their time and energy to make this country a better place. I want to take a moment and add my voice to thank you, our St. Louis Area Chapter Volunteers for everything you have done and continue to do for our community!
With our increasingly busy lives it’s easy to get focused on the “to-do” list and forget about the things we moved to the “finally done!” list. And no matter how many things we complete, the “to-do” list never seems to get any shorter. It can be hard to stop…take a deep breath…and look back at what we have accomplished.
So stop, breathe, and enjoy a look at some of the things we did together in 2010:
- Assisted 941 families who lost their homes to fires with food, clothing and shelter – that’s almost 3 fires each day
- Provided service to 10,272 military personnel, veterans and families through Services to Armed Forces programs – that’s more than the total number of undergraduate students at Washington University
- Instructed 32,746 children and adults in water safety, learn-to-swim classes and lifeguard programs – that’s enough to fill Chaifetz Arena more than three times
- 73,364 people learned how to save a life with First Aid and CPR/AED skills – that’s nearly two sold out Cardinal games at Busch Stadium
- Reached 104,524 people with disaster preparedness information – that’s enough people to fill more than 2,000 Greyhound buses
That’s a pretty impressive “finally done” list!
But as Red Cross Volunteers you know the work never really ends. Disasters can happen at any time, a heart can stop with no warning, a fire can leave a family homeless in a flash and the Red Cross has to be ready to respond. There is no way we could do it all without you, our Volunteers. You are the skilled hand, the caring face and the warm heart of everything we do for the St. Louis community and, on behalf of the entire American Red Cross, I thank you.
In honor of National Volunteer Week, we’re offering a special promotion to volunteers for items purchased on
RedCrossStore.org. Starting April 1, through April 30, Red Cross volunteers can take advantage of a 10% savings off their total purchase with promotional code
VOLUNTEER2011. Spread the word today!
Thanks again for all you do, and Happy Volunteer Week!
Mary
Mary Rosen is the Volunteer Resources Director for the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter.