Tuesday, September 9, 2014

Red Cross Recruiting Franklin County Volunteers


For the American Red Cross, volunteers make up over 90% of the organization’s work force and are key to fulfilling our humanitarian mission.  The help extended to neighbors in our communities, whether it is in the wake of a house fire down the street or large-scale disaster response, is possible due to this corps of dedicated and compassionate volunteers. 
 
Over the past year, we responded to 200 house and apartment fires across our region, which includes all of Vermont and 12 Upper Valley communities in New Hampshire.  At present, in Franklin County, we have only a handful of volunteers.  We are working to build out this volunteer corps to ensure that we can provide timely responses to county residents.  There are times now where volunteers from other counties provide our response in Franklin County.

Anyone interested in learning more about what the American Red Cross is accomplishing in Franklin County and how they can be a part of this work is encouraged to come to an information meeting being held at St. Albans City Hall, 100 North Main Street, at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 30, 2014.  Meet with Red Cross Deputy Chief Response Officer Brent Garrow, Volunteer Manager Angela Russell and a few of the current members of the organization’s Franklin County Disaster Action Team.  Drinks and snacks will be provided.
 
Becoming a Red Cross volunteer does not require any specialized experience.  Any training a volunteer will need is provided at no cost.  Red Cross volunteers come from all walks of life and all ages.  The work of a Red Cross volunteer may not always be easy, but it is rewarding.  “I hear it from our volunteers that the reward for their efforts is knowing that they have helped take care of a person in need during what may be the most trying experience in their life,” said Deputy Chief Response Officer Brent Garrow.

We hope you will share information about this upcoming informational meeting with friends, family and colleagues in Franklin County.  If you have any questions, contact Angela Russell at 802-660-9130, ext. 107 or angela.russell@redcross.org.

Friday, November 15, 2013

Local Volunteer on International Assignment


Cristina Hammond, a 20-year volunteer from the Upper Valley, is currently on a 5 week Red Cross deployment in Vietnam.  This is her 9th overseas deployment to 7 different countries.  Cristina is in Vietnam to assist relief and recovery activities in the wake two other recent typhoons.  After striking the Philippines, Typhoon Haiyan was steaming toward Vietnam.  Cristina set her assignment aside and headed into the region of Vietnam expected to be most affected, preparing to assist in an anticipated recovery process. Here is Cristina’s journal entry as the typhoon approach, as well as a brief postscript.  It exemplifies the dedication and compassion shown by our volunteer corps.

November 8, 2013  -- The Night Train to Hue
As I boarded the train last night to Hue, an old slogan flashed through my mind:  Do something every day that scares you.  Well, I did.  I am one who is so terrified of things like roller coasters, that I can’t even watch others (especially my own children) stand in line for them.  And I always duck out of line before getting to the front.  Yet, when a disaster strikes, I am the first on the ride to go help assist.  In this case, it was a night train from Ha Tinh, Vietnam to Hue, Vietnam.  Now, that doesn’t mean I didn’t feel fear.  I just didn’t step out of line.
As word came in of the approaching Typhoon, my Vietnamese co-worker Linh and I spoke to our boss in Hanoi.  With the typhoon approaching, planned activities for our cash grant program had been cancelled so Michael gave us options:  1) return to Hanoi until we can restart our activities, or 2) move south into the path of the storm and help the Viet Nam Red Cross (VNRC) in these Provinces prepare and respond. One thing disaster response teaches you is to be flexible.  Another is to put humanity first.  Of course, always we are to put our own safety as a priority, but after that, do I want to be safe outside the affected area if I believe I can not only be safe but also be useful within?
Arriving in Hue, Linh and I soon saw the first visible signs of storm preparation:  A few young men climbing a tree to cut it down so that it won’t be blown over.  Throughout the day, we see many more trees being trimmed and people taking down street ornaments, removing loose sheet metal, and closing up shops.  For our afternoon, I did my laundry in the tub and checked my supplies while watching CNN report on the destruction just starting to be assessed in the Philippines.  The hotel staff came in to tape the windows.
Later in the afternoon, we had a meeting with the Vice Chair of the Provincial Chapter of the Viet Nam Red Cross (VNRC).  He explained the evacuations and other preparedness activities underway.  Over 100,000 evacuated in this province with a total of 600,000 in evacuation centers along the Central coast. We had an excellent conversation about the good work being done and a review of past typhoons and floods.  Lessons have been learned; new procedures to release water and who and when to evacuate are in place.  It feels a little surreal to be at the hotel now and waiting for the storm.  But that is part of preparedness.  Expect (and prepare for) the worst, hope for the best, and flexibly deal with whatever the day’s reality throws at you.
So here I am.  Not in line – nor on the train – just in the path of the eye of the hurricane.
Postlude:
Thankfully, Haiyan veered sharply north and skittered along up the coast of the Central Provinces.  The intensity reduced to a weaker category 1 tropical typhoon as landfall occurred in the Northeast.  As the path changed, the alerts went out and another 200,000 people evacuated in the northeastern province coastal areas.  The total of over 800,000 evacuees was the greatest Viet Nam had ever done before.  We experienced heavy rains and seas with high winds but, luckily, not the kind of devastation many feared. It was still a significant storm event with 10 dead and more than 50 injured along with millions of dollars of damage to homes, agriculture and aquaculture.
With that storm past, the 5th in the last 7 weeks, I went back to the work I came here to do:  assist the IFRC and VNRC with relief and recovery activities associated with Typhoons Wutip and Nari.  These typhoons caused significant damages (over $700 million US in economic loss) to many coastal communities in 9 Central Provinces (nine provinces of Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue, Da Nang, Quang Nam and Quang Ngai) destroying homes and wiping out livelihoods.  The American Red Cross deployed me here as a technical advisor to support the distribution of household items and cash grants to assist some of the most vulnerable (elderly, disabled, single-headed households, etc.) who had been severely affected by the typhoons and did not have sufficient resources or coping capacity to recover on their own.

 

Friday, November 8, 2013

Two Vermont Women Honored for WWII Service with Red Cross


Veterans Day Weekend Poignant Time to Acknowledge Service to Red Cross and Country

 
 
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE… (Castleton and Putney, Vermont – November 8, 2013) This Sunday, November 10th, the Red Cross will honor two local World War II era Red Cross workers who gave so much for their country; one giving their life. Veterans Day seems the appropriate time to pay tribute to their war-time service. Events in Castleton, VT and Putney, VT will provide the backdrop for Red Cross leadership to re-affirm its commitment to the Armed Forces and those that support the organization’s efforts to serve the men and women in uniform.

Maxine Loomis, who was born and raised in Putney, Vermont, received training as a nurse at a Springfield, MA hospital. At age 26, she volunteered to be an American Red Cross nurse and to serve overseas at a hospital in London, England. The year was 1941 and war raged in Europe. While the United States had not yet entered the war, the American Red Cross headed to Europe in support of the organization’s humanitarian mission. Maxine’s commitment and passion for her work was cut short when, in late June 1941, aboard a ship bound for England, her life was lost as a result of a German submarine attack.
 
Maxine Loomis was one of six with the Red Cross, one house mother and five nurses, who lost their lives when the SS Maasdam was torpedoed. To honor her service, the American Red Cross gave the family a plaque that read: 

To Maxine C. Loomis
In honor of
her courage and resolution
in crossing the sea to serve
with the American Red Cross
Harvard field hospital unit
England
1915 – 1941

This plaque was affixed to a grave stone in the family plot in Westminster, Vermont. In 2011, that plaque was inexplicably stolen. Maxine’s surviving sister-in-law, Marilyn Loomis recently reached out to the Vermont & the New Hampshire Upper Valley American Red Cross. To ensure that the memory of Maxine and the bravery and compassion she exemplified are not forgotten, the Red Cross has had made a new plaque, inscribed with the same message as the original. On Sunday, as part of a 2:00 p.m. Veterans Day ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park at the Town Hall in Putney, VT, this new plaque will be presented to the Loomis family and soon will be affixed to Maxine’s grave stone.

If there are questions about other facets to the program scheduled for 2pm Sunday at Veterans Memorial Park at the Town Hall of Putney, contact Laurel Ellis of the Putney Veterans Memorial Committee at 802-387-4489.

The commitment and dedication of Marjorie Burditt Anderson of Castleton, Vermont will also be honored this Sunday as part of special service at the Federated Church of Castleton (504 Main Street), which is slated to begin at 11:00 a.m.. Mrs. Anderson is still an active member of that church and will be on hand to receive a pin and certificate honoring her World War II service with the American Red Cross.  

Marjorie’s tenure with the Red Cross involved service both at home and abroad, including that as a Red Cross Service Club Director assigned to Camp Herbert Tareton near LeHavre, France. Upon her return to the states, she worked for the Red Cross at the VA hospital in White River Jct., buoying the spirits of wounded soldiers. Both abroad and at home, she helped provide relief and a piece of “home” for America’s soldiers. At times this was simply setting time aside to play a game of cards, while at other times it meant sitting down with a wounded soldier and helping to write a difficult letter home.

The American Red Cross honors those who served overseas through the “Our Legacy Continues” project and will present Mrs. Anderson with a pin and certificate this Sunday. In addition, Mrs. Anderson is set to receive a copy of Senate Resolution 471, provided by Senator Patrick Leahy. The U.S. Senate Resolution is an acknowledgment of the work of Red Cross Clubmobile women. It was the Clubmobiles that delivered hot coffee and, as the Resolution says, “a vital connection to home to thousands of servicemen . . . .” While Mrs. Anderson was not a Clubmobiler, those women were her close friends and S. Res. 471 reflects on all of the women who “went to war” in support of our military during World War II.

For further information Sunday’s event (11 a.m.) and the plans of the Federated Church of Castleton to recognize Mrs. Anderson, veterans and others who give to their community and country, contact Rob Noble at 802-558-2293. Noble is the Church’s minister.

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Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Red Cross Recruiting Franklin County Volunteers


For the American Red Cross, volunteers make up over 90% of the organization’s work force and are key to fulfilling our humanitarian mission.  The help extended to neighbors in our communities, whether it is in the wake of a house fire down the street or large-scale disaster response, is possible due to this corps of dedicated and compassionate volunteers. 
 
Over the past year, we responded to 200 house and apartment fires across our region, which includes all of Vermont and 12 Upper Valley communities in New Hampshire.  At present, in Franklin County, we have only a handful of volunteers.  We are working to build out this volunteer corps to ensure that we can provide timely responses to county residents.  There are times now where volunteers from other counties provide our response in Franklin County.

Anyone interested in learning more about what the American Red Cross is accomplishing in Franklin County and how they can be a part of this work is encouraged to come to an information meeting being held at St. Albans City Hall, 100 North Main Street, at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 30, 2014.  Meet with Red Cross Deputy Chief Response Officer Brent Garrow, Volunteer Manager Angela Russell and a few of the current members of the organization’s Franklin County Disaster Action Team.  Drinks and snacks will be provided.
 
Becoming a Red Cross volunteer does not require any specialized experience.  Any training a volunteer will need is provided at no cost.  Red Cross volunteers come from all walks of life and all ages.  The work of a Red Cross volunteer may not always be easy, but it is rewarding.  “I hear it from our volunteers that the reward for their efforts is knowing that they have helped take care of a person in need during what may be the most trying experience in their life,” said Deputy Chief Response Officer Brent Garrow.

We hope you will share information about this upcoming informational meeting with friends, family and colleagues in Franklin County.  If you have any questions, contact Angela Russell at 802-660-9130, ext. 107 or angela.russell@redcross.org.

Thursday, June 27, 2013


RED CROSS PREPARES FOR HEAVY RAINS; 
URGES OTHERS TO DO THE SAME
Heavy rains expected to soak already saturated ground 
 
June 27, 2013 -- The American Red Cross of Vermont & the New Hampshire Upper Valley is urging people to be alert and take steps in advance of the heavy rain expected over the next 24-hours.  A few steps taken before, during and after potential flooding will help ensure people weather the storm safely.  The Red Cross is heeding its own advice as it takes steps to prepare for a potential response to anticipated flooding. 

Already saturated ground that is expected to receive significant rain in the coming days creates a potential need in communities across the region.  The steps being taken by the American Red Cross of the Vermont & the New Hampshire Upper Valley to ready itself include: 

  • Red Cross volunteers have been asked to advise of their availability through the weekend; more than 60 have already responded
  • Vehicles and equipment are being readied
  • Outreach has begun to potential shelter sites
  • Lines of communication are open with State and local emergency planners
  • Red Cross disaster services workers are being lined up to staff the State Emergency Operations Center
As conditions warrant, the Red Cross will look to open shelters to serve communities that may be hard hit by the anticipated severe weather.  Additional services to impacted towns will be assessed in consultation with local and state officials. 

While the Red Cross, locally, is hard at work to ensure it is prepared should the need for its service arise, the organization is urging individuals to take steps to prepare for the potential for rapidly rising water along streams, rivers and in low-lying areas.  The Red Cross suggests: 

  • Before -- Ensure that you have available and ready to go items that you may need if you must evacuate your home.  This includes everything from a flashlight, to a fully-charged cell phone, baby and pet supplies, medications and more.
  • During -- Stay informed and safe during a flooding event by ensuring you have a crank or battery-powered radio; head to higher ground as warranted; stay away from flooded roads while driving; and keep curious children away from flood waters.  Just six inches of swiftly moving water can sweep a person off their feet and a car can be swept away in less than two feet of water.
  • After -- Only return home after it has been declared safe; look for and avoid downed power lines; wear protective gear (gloves, boots, mask) during clean up; and ensure your water supply is safe.
A great deal more preparedness information is available at www.redcross.org.  The Red Cross strongly encourages people to go to this site, take the time to review their safety plan, create an emergency kit for their home and car and to stay informed before, during and after storms.  To put much of this helpful information right at your fingertips, the Red Cross also encourages people to download its free First Aid and other preparedness apps from the iTunes Store or Google Play for Android users.

Sunday, June 9, 2013

SHAFTSBURY FAMILY OF FIVE LOSES HOME TO FIRE
Red Cross Volunteers Provide Hope and Help to those Displaced 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE(Shaftsbury, VT – June 9, 2013)  Last night, a Shaftsbury, VT family of five, including three children ages 5 to 15, lost their home to fire.  The Cleveland Avenue blaze devastated the home, causing the family to lose everything.  Red Cross disaster services volunteers with the organization’s Bennington County Disaster Action Team took action to extend a helping hand. 

Knowing that a displaced family’s recovery begins the moment disaster strikes, the volunteers responded quickly to determine the family’s emergency needs.  The Red Cross made arrangements for the five to stay in a local hotel for the next few nights and provided financial assistance to replace food and clothing lost in the fire.  With these immediate needs addressed, the trained Red Cross caseworkers set a follow up meeting for today to determine what other forms of assistance or referrals can be offered to help in the recovery process. 

“This family, as with each family that loses their home to fire, faces a difficult road ahead,” said Doug Bishop, spokesperson with the Vermont & the New Hampshire Upper Valley Region of the American Red Cross.  “We are thankful for the work of our volunteers and for the support of others in the community that help ensure a Red Cross response is there for each family in need.” 

Red Cross volunteers with the 12 Disaster Action Teams throughout our region strive to meet with disaster victims as soon as possible, ensuring that both emotional support and immediate assistance are available.  In addition to the lodging, food and clothing support that is traditionally provided, volunteers can connect the displaced with Red Cross disaster health and disaster mental health services and offer referrals to state, local and charitable resources in the area that can help the impacted residents as they begin their difficult road to recovery. 

A vibrant volunteer corps helps the organization maintain its ability to provide timely and compassionate assistance to people across our region that have been impacted by disaster.  To be a part of our group of dedicated volunteers, no prior experience is necessary and all the training that is needed is free and will be provided.  To learn more about the American Red Cross volunteer experience, go to www.redcross.org/vermont or contact Angela Russell at 802-660-9130, ext. 107 or angela.russell@redcross.org. 

To help people affected by fires as well as devastating natural disasters, a donation can be made to support American Red Cross Disaster Relief.  Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for and provide shelter, food, emotional support and other assistance in response to disasters. Visit www.redcross.org, call 802-660-9130, ext. 111, or mail your contribution to American Red Cross, 29 Mansfield Avenue, Burlington, VT 05401.

 

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Friday, May 31, 2013

NEWS RELEASE 

RED CROSS CONDUCTING OUTREACH TO FLOOD-AFFECTED TOWNS
Volunteers to perform damage assessment and provide client casework

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE(Jericho/Underhill, VT – May 31, 2013)  A week ago, heavy rains and flash flooding struck several Vermont towns, perhaps none as hard as the communities of Jericho and Underhill.  While a few affected families have reached out to the Red Cross for assistance, the anecdotal reports of damage would suggest that greater need remains to be addressed.  Tomorrow, the Red Cross is sending three teams of volunteers to Jericho and Underhill to conduct damage assessment and provide client casework services as needed.

 Volunteers working out of the Underhill Town Clerk’s office at 12 Pleasant Valley Road as their base of operation for the day’s work will be supported by three teams going directly into the field.  The damage assessment data will help inform the Red Cross as to what additional supports may be needed in the affected communities.  Members of these volunteer teams will also provide client casework services as necessary, sharing information as to how the Red Cross may be able to support recovery and offering information about other resources that may be available to help a family through the recovery process.

WHO:       American Red Cross

WHAT:     Damage Assessment and Support to Communities Impacted by Recent Flooding

WHEN:     Saturday, June 1st, 9am – 5pm

WHERE:   Jericho and Underhill Vermont

HOW:       3 Mobile Teams and an Operations Headquarters at the Underhill Town Clerk’s Office  (12 Pleasant Valley Road, Underhill).  Community members in need can look for our mobile teams, go to the Underhill Town Clerk’s Office or contact a temporary hotline (tomorrow only) of (802) 355-1209.

While the focal point of the mobile teams will be Jericho and Underhill, members of surrounding communities impacted by last week’s flooding can stop by the Underhill Town Clerk’s Office between 9am and 5pm or call our temporary help line (tomorrow only) at (802) 355-1209.