02-17-11
White Plains, NY
Red Cross Asks People To Join During Red Cross Month

March is Red Cross Month, and the American Red Cross is asking people to join them in helping those in need by volunteering their time, making a donation, taking a class, or giving blood.

“When someone provides a hot meal to a disaster victim, gives blood, takes a first aid class, or helps someone in the military, they join the Red Cross,” said John Ravitz, Chief Executive Officer of the American Red Cross in Westchester County. “We want to say ‘thank you’ to all who support us. That support enables us to provide help and hope to those who need our assistance.”

For nearly 100 years, U.S. Presidents have called on people to support the American Red Cross and its humanitarian mission. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first to proclaim March as Red Cross Month in 1943. Since that time, President Obama and every president since have issued proclamations designating March as Red Cross Month.

The Red Cross has been helping people for 130 years, responding to disasters, assisting members of the military, teaching lifesaving skills, and serving as one of the largest blood suppliers in the United States.

Nationally, the Red Cross responds to an average of nearly 200 disasters every day. The organization provides a round-the-clock link between those in the military and their families, and supplies blood and blood products to approximately 3,000 hospitals and transfusion centers across the country.

The American Red Cross in Westchester County responded to 86 local disasters last year providing shelter, food, clothing and mental health counseling to 122 families. The chapter processed 7 emergency military calls, and trained more than 13,000 people in critical lifesaving skills.

“We work very diligently to help those in need,” Ravitz said. “Whether out on a disaster, alongside our troops, at a blood drive or in a first aid class, Red Cross workers touch the lives of millions of people every year.”

The Red Cross is not a government agency and relies on donations of time, money and blood to do its work.

“When people join the Red Cross by volunteering, donating blood, taking a course or making a contribution, they enable us to continue our work, both here at home, and around the world,” Ravitz said.

Westchester County residents who are interested in joining the American Red Cross in Westchester County should visit www.westchestercounty.redcross.org.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies nearly half of the nation's blood; teaches lifesaving skills; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a charitable organization — not a government agency — and depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit www.westchestercounty.redcross.org.

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