Tag Archives: Blood Donation

Cleveland Clinic blood drive hits milestone

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3,000 donations made since 2019

Hundreds of Cleveland Clinic employees pass through the lower-level atrium in the Robert J. Tomsich Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Institute every day. Institute Communications Manager Gary Weiland saw the space as an ideal place to hold American Red Cross blood drives. The first one was held in April of 2019.

Dr. Zaher Otrock and Sheri Bova of Cleveland Clinic,, Jill Trupo and Bonnie Flenner of the Red Cross, and, Gary Weiland of Cleveland Clinic

Less than a year later, the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Many businesses and schools that had been used regularly for blood drives before the pandemic were shuttered, severely reducing the number of blood drives – and the number of blood donations – causing a nationwide blood shortage.

But Cleveland Clinic did not – COULD not – close, and with a robust health care workforce passing through the atrium every day, there was plenty of opportunity to collect much-needed blood in that space.

“At first it was quarterly,” Gary said of the blood drives being held there. “But when COVID hit, we began to schedule them every two weeks.”

“We can’t overemphasize the value of having Cleveland Clinic as a site for frequent blood drives,” said Bonnie Flenner, Regional Donor Services Executive for the Red Cross of Northern Ohio. “We are so grateful for their partnership, especially during the pandemic. It has truly made a difference in the lives of so many patients.”

Since that first blood drive in 2019, more than 3,000 donations of blood have been collected, a milestone recently celebrated when Cleveland Clinic research coordinator Brandon Blake became the donor from whom the 3,000th donation was collected.

Brandon Blake, Cleveland Clinic Research Coordinator made the 3,000th donation

“I was shocked,” Brandon said upon learning of the milestone. “It’s like a baseball player getting his 3,000th hit. It’s pretty special.”

Brandon said he donates blood because it makes a difference. Dr. Zaher Otrock, head of Transfusion Medicine at Cleveland Clinic, couldn’t agree more.

“People with cancer and so many other conditions could not be treated without the blood they need to have every day,” he said.

The Red Cross collections staff working at the blood drive that day included Shacriea Bost, Kary Conley, Makayla Williams, Devyn Mills and Alexis Bell. They posed for a photo, surrounding a sign created to mark the milestone event.

Red Cross phlebotomists Alexis Bell and Kary Conley

And donors that day got a special treat – beyond the cookies, snacks and juice boxes that are typically available following a blood donation. They were offered a piece of cake as well, also created to help celebrate the 3,000 th donation made at that blood drive site.

Companies, churches, civic groups and others interested in hosting a blood drive – or multiple blood drives – can learn more by visiting redcrossblood.org.

See more photos from the 3000th blood donation here.

Posted by Ryan Lang, Red Cross volunteer and board member

Edited by Glenda Bogar, Red Cross volunteer

Stay well this flu season and donate blood

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By Kathryn Dean, American Red Cross volunteer

Flu season is here and it’s time to start thinking about receiving your annual flu vaccination. According to the Ohio Department of Health, flu season in Ohio typically runs from October to March. However, you can get the flu at any time of the year. The American Red Cross recommends that you protect yourself and your loved ones by getting your annual flu vaccination this year.

“Vaccination is really the most effective way to protect yourself against influenza,” said Dr. Christine Schmotzer, vice chair of system pathology operations at University Hospitals in Cleveland and a member of the Board of Directors for the Red Cross of Northeast Ohio. “The flu vaccine is known to be effective at both preventing flu illness and decreasing the severity of flu illness.”

With a national blood shortage declared on Sept. 11, the Red Cross is in need of healthy donors to help meet the blood needs of more than 70 area hospitals and their patients in Northern Ohio. Only around 3% of the general population is eligible at any given time to donate blood due to a variety of factors, and when people become ill, eligibility drops even more. As flu numbers begin to climb across the country, it’s vital that healthy members of the community stay well by getting their annual vaccinations.

“It’s important to note that we recommend getting the flu vaccine every year to maximize the protective benefits,” Dr. Schmotzer said. “The protective effects of the virus decrease over a period of months, so they do not last strongly into the next season. Also, the virus changes frequently between seasons, so vaccine manufacturers modify the strains of virus in the vaccine to match the protection from season to season.”

Around 500 units of blood are needed per day in Northern Ohio and with the current shortage, it’s more important than ever to come out and donate. The Red Cross recommends that as long as you are feeling healthy and symptom-free on the day of donation, it is okay to donate. There is no wait time between flu vaccination and blood donation. This includes vaccination against COVID-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

From now until Oct. 20, the Red Cross will be providing a $15 Amazon gift card to anyone who comes to donate blood as a thank you for your support. Visit RedCrossBlood.org or use the Red Cross Blood Donor App to schedule an appointment or find a blood drive near you.

Edited by Glenda Bogar, Red Cross volunteer

Posted by Ryan Lang, Red Cross board member and volunteer

Shedding light on Sickle Cell Disease

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By Eilene E. Guy, American Red Cross volunteer

Sickle Cell Disease is hiding in plain sight, and La’Shardae Scott is determined to bring it into the spotlight.

Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is the most common genetic blood disorder in the United States, afflicting some 100,000 people, primarily those of African descent. Every year, an estimated 1,000 babies are born with SCD.

During September, Sickle Cell Awareness Month, the American Red Cross is teaming up with SCD crusaders like La’Shardae to bring attention to this painful and life-threatening disorder.

The Scott Family: Eric, La’Shardae, Emory, Evan, Eric and Liam

La’Shardae has launched the nonprofit Scott Center for Observation, Treatment and Transition in Oregon, Ohio, to minimize infant mortality in populations of color and help families and individuals with SCD transition successfully from pediatric to adult care.

She’s well aware that people of color have a fraught history with the medical establishment, which leads to poor doctor-patient relationships. Even today, misconceptions persist about Black people’s tolerance for pain.

“Patients born with this condition don’t look ill; they learn to manage their pain, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t real,” she said. “So when they finally seek help, they get dismissed as drug-seeking and that leads to further complications.”

Screening of newborns for SCD is now routine in all 50 states, but too often parents — confronted with the sudden notice that their baby has an incurable condition — don’t know how to handle that reality as the child grows, La’Shardae said.

At her house, she relies on medications, appropriate diet and “hydration, hydration, hydration” to keep her two SCD “warriors,” eight-year-old Emory and Evan, 7, thriving. At the same time, she advocates for them when they experience the acute pain and other side effects typical of SCD. But she knows the damaging effects accumulate.

SCD causes red blood cells to take the shape of crescent moons or sickles. These misshapen cells don’t carry their full load of oxygen throughout the body, leading to anemia, pain “crises” and gradual damage to organs and tissues. Worse yet, the sickled cells tend to clump together, causing strokes.

Transfusions play a key role in “diluting” these defective cells in the blood stream, easing pain and slowing damage. Blood from one in three African American donors carries unique characteristics — antigens — that make it a close match for SCD patients.

This is where the Red Cross comes in. As supplier of more than 40% of the nation’s whole blood and blood products, the Red Cross needs a diverse donor population to meet the many unique transfusion needs.

Since launching its Sickle Cell Initiative in 2021, the Red Cross has seen a 60% increase in first- time African American blood donors to more than 45,000.

La’Shardae is working hard to boost that number. She uses social media platforms, Facebook Live and community presentations to educate and recruit. You can read all about her activities at scottcenteroh.org.

Her next event is the Scott Community Blood Drive in partnership with the Red Cross, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 16 at 653 Miami St. in Toledo.

To register to give blood, go to redcrossblood.org, call 1-800-REDCROSS or use the free Red Cross blood donor app.

Edited by Glenda Bogar, Red Cross volunteer

Posted by Ryan Lang, Red Cross board member and volunteer

An apprehensive volunteer turned regular blood donor: How Ashley Hopkins discovered just how special her blood is

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By Ryan Lang, American Red Cross board member and volunteer

More than 20 years ago, if you’d asked Ashley Hopkins about donating blood, you may have gotten a cringe coupled with a shake of the head. While she’d grown up around blood donors and blood drives (her father was a firefighter, now fire captain), donating herself was never really an option.

Ashley Hopkins, American Red Cross board member, volunteer and blood donor

“Back then I had a crazy fear of not even needles, but needles taking blood out — it just freaked me out so I never did it,” Ashley said. 

So how did someone with a healthy fear of the blood donation process wind up a volunteer for the American Red Cross Blood Services and a regular donor? 

“I went to volunteermatch.org and put in my zip code, and (blood services) came up as a flexible option with weekend availability.” So despite Ashley’s apprehensions, it was a perfect match, and as she’d soon find out, even more perfect than she’d initially thought. 

Ashley started out working weekend blood drives. “I did a background check and then shadowed someone for a couple of blood drives and then I was on my own,” she said, noting that back in 2012 things were “a little bit different.” 

At one of those blood drives at the Canfield fair (Ashley’s favorite blood drive), she was working a few days in a row with one specific blood rep who asked her why she’d never donated before.

“I don’t know, it just seemed kinda scary,” Ashley replied. But that same day she decided to roll up her sleeve and donate — on the bus at the fair, which Ashley highly recommends. “It is heaven,” she advocated. 

When you donate blood, the Red Cross tests your blood. And that’s when Ashley found out how special hers was. “I did not know that they were testing for a specific allele (genetic information present in your DNA) in your blood that is an antibody.” After donating Ashley got an email saying that her blood was CMV negative, which is quite rare. 

Red Cross board member and volunteer Lou Joseph with Ashley Hopkins

From RedCross.org: CMV is generally harmless to adults but can be fatal to babies. For this reason, babies needing transfusions as part of their medical care should only receive blood from donors who have not been exposed to CMV (CMV negative).

And being O-Positive, Ashley’s blood is even more special, as she’s compatible with roughly 80 percent of people who need blood! Even more of a reason for her to donate regularly — every 56 days, if she can. 

When asked what she’d say to someone who is apprehensive about donating for the first time, especially someone who is nervous or scared, Ashley simply said, “Volunteer at a blood drive!” She said seeing it happen and helping with the process helped her overcome her fear of not just needles, but the whole process.

To find a blood drive near you, CLICK HERE. To learn about volunteer opportunities with the Red Cross, CLICK HERE.

Edited by Glenda Bogar, American Red Cross volunteer

Raising awareness in Akron for patients with sickle cell disease

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When patients living with sickle cell disease face a sickle cell crisis, blood transfusions can make a lifesaving difference. That’s why the Akron National Panhellenic Council partnered recently with the American Red Cross to grow the number of blood donors who are Black to help patients with sickle cell disease, the most common inherited blood disorder in the U.S.

28 donations were collected at the Akron NPHC blood drive on Saturday, June 23, to help raise awareness for patients living with the disease. Nine sororities and fraternities took park in the drive.

Jasina Chapman, first-time blood donor and organizer of the Akron NPHC blood drive for sickle cell awareness

“We mobilized all of our groups to get them to either donate or volunteer,” said Jasina Chapman, who donated blood for the first time at the drive. As the Community Service Chairperson for the Eta Delta Sigma Chapter of Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. and the Akron NPHC, she helped organize the blood drive.

“We are African American leaders in our community,” she said. “We need to activate African Americans to donate blood.”

More than 100,000 people live with sickle cell disease nationwide, and the majority of patients are of African descent. The disease distorts soft, round blood cells and turns them hard and crescent-shaped, which can cause extreme pain. When hardened, the cells can get caught in blood vessels, potentially leading to stroke and organ failure. Blood transfusions are often used in treatment, and many individuals who are Black have distinct markers on their red blood cells that make their blood donations the most compatible match for helping patients with sickle cell disease. One in three African American blood donors is a match for people with sickle cell disease.

Christa Nuru, one of 28 donors at the Akron NPHC blood drive

How to donate blood:
Simply download the American Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit RedCrossBlood.org, call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enable the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Echo device to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver’s license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age in most states (16 with parental consent where allowed by state law), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.

Blood and platelet donors can save time at their next donation by using RapidPass ® to complete their pre-donation reading and health history questionnaire online, on the day of their donation, before arriving at the blood drive. To get started, follow the instructions at RedCrossBlood.org/RapidPass or use the Blood Donor App.

World Sickle Cell Day

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By Eilene E. Guy, American Red Cross Volunteer

What do Juneteenth (today) and World Sickle Cell Day (also today) have in common? Both of these events focus on African Americans.

Glinda Dames-Fincher is a member of the American Red Cross Sickle Cell Sub-committee in northern Ohio. She’s a proud, outspoken “sickle cell warrior” calling for more Black blood donors.

Glinda Dames-Fincher

“Over 80 percent of Americans with Sickle Cell Anemia are of African descent, and ethnicity matters with blood transfusion,” she said. Many individuals who are Black have unique structures on their red blood cells that make their donations the most compatible to help patients with sickle cell disease. Glinda likes to think of it as “special sauce.”

“So please, African Americans, roll up your sleeves and help sickle cell warriors like me fight their battle!”

For Glinda, the need is personal. In order to combat the many effects of sickle cell (SCD) on her body, she gets two units of red blood cells every month; the procedure involves withdrawing one unit of her damaged blood each time and then transfusing in two units of healthy red cells.

She figures she’s received more than 600 units of red cells, between regular transfusions and the many surgeries she’s undergone to repair organs damaged by oxygen deprivation.

Glinda is a wealth of knowledge about sickle cell:

 This inherited disorder makes red blood cells sticky, rigid and curl into a C “sickle” shape, limiting their ability to carry oxygen into every tissue in the body. The misshapen cells also tend to clump, leading to various complications. “For many pediatrics, a stroke is their first major sickle cell event,” she said.

 When tissues are starved of oxygen, something as simple as a change in the weather can trigger excruciating pain – called a sickle cell crisis – lasting from hours to days or even weeks. That often sends sickle cell sufferers to emergency rooms for treatment, including pain killers and blood transfusions.

 Sickled red blood cells also die prematurely: The distorted cells die within 10 to 20 days, compared to normal red blood cells that typically last 100 to 120 days. That leads to a shortage of red blood cells, a type of anemia. Here again, transfusions are crucial.

 Glinda is 64. “When I was born, life expectancy for a sickle cell patient was 18 years. Now it’s 40 to 60 years, thanks to medications and research,” she said. However, over time, patients may be subject to persistent infections, and damage to kidneys, heart, lungs and other organs.

 SCD affects more than 100,000 people in the United States. Eight out of 10 of them are of African descent; the rest are Hispanic or trace their ancestry to south Asia (such as India), southern Europe (Greece and Italy) or the Middle East (such as Saudi Arabia and Lebanon).

 SCD testing is part of the routine blood tests for newborns in the United States. Additionally, the Red Cross provides sickle cell trait testing for all blood donors who identify themselves as Black or African American. Those with the “trait” inherited a sickle cell gene from one parent; those who got a sickle cell gene from both parents are born with the disease.

Since the best blood match for a patient receiving ongoing transfusions comes from donors of the same genetic background, the Red Cross is urging people of all ethnicities to give blood and help increase the number of diverse donors, so we can find the best match for all patients.

Watch this video that documents Glinda’s ongoing struggle with sickle cell disease.

In honor of Juneteenth, learn more about SCD and please make an appointment to donate blood at RedCrossBlood.org/SickleCell.

Posted by Ryan Lang, American Red Cross board member and volunteer

Why am I a blood donor? Why not?

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A dedicated donor reflects on World Blood Donor Day

By Doug Bardwell, American Red Cross volunteer

As I was asked to write this article, I tried to remember back when I made my first donation, some 56 units and 26 years ago. At the time, I was working in Terminal Tower, and I decided to give when a co- worker said something as simple as, “Hey, I’m going over to donate blood. Want to come along?”

Doug Bardwell

I’m sure I asked about qualifications, but he assured me that they’d give me a quick physical check and make sure I was able to donate. That’s all it took, and I was on my way to becoming a blood donor. “Why not?”


The blood donor center was set up in an unoccupied office space in Tower City Center. I was actually amazed at how quick it was to make my donation. No drama, just a pint of blood lighter when I left and a sticker to show I had donated.

Outta sight – outta mind

Nobody asked again until 2003, right after the Invasion of Iraq. While having a discussion about the war with a friend, he said that he had heard someone saying the only thing we could do to help our troops was to donate blood or donate money.

With a growing family, I had more of the former than the latter, so I checked around to see where and when the closest donation site would be opening. Donation number two was scheduled, but this time, someone at the Red Cross site asked about how often I donated. They made mention of the idea of donating around Christmas each year as a way to give someone else a gift that might save a life but cost me nothing. That sounded like a great idea, so I put a yearly note on my Day-Timer calendar for each December.

You can do more, you know?

It was another conversation with a Red Cross worker that finally spurred me to do more when they said, “You know, you can donate every eight weeks, don’t you?” Well, no, I guess I didn’t, but that started it rolling, trying to donate as frequently as my schedule would permit.

I also realized at that time that if I hadn’t been asked by someone else to go the first time, I might have never donated at all. I then started talking about donations to family members and other friends.

I do the coming events A/V screens in our church’s foyer and lobby, so I started making sure that all upcoming blood drives were advertised on our screens each time they were scheduled. Posting on social media, I’d mention the date and time with a “Won’t you join me next Tuesday?” type message.

So, I’ll end with the same message that started me – “Hey, want to come along?” There are dozens of locations available each week. It’s honestly easy to do, and you could save as many as three lives each time you donate.

Posted by Ryan Lang, Red Cross board member and volunteer

Bringing help and hope: Volunteer nurses find sharing their skills rewarding

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Honoring professional healthcare volunteers during National Nurses Week

By: Kelly C. McClure, MLS, BSN, RN, American Red Cross volunteer

What does a disaster look like? There’s no rough blueprint or an all-encompassing definition for the word, but for those who have lost everything in a fire, flood, earthquake, or hurricane, it can look like complete despair. In the United States alone, a disaster occurs approximately every eight minutes. Stretched out, that’s more than 60,000 disasters each year that the American Red Cross will deploy volunteers to help victims by supplying clean water, food and shelter. But what happens when there are physical injuries, wounds or medical conditions that need immediate attention? The Red Cross’ team of volunteer nurses are there to help.

Beth Kartman-Orgel, RN, Red Cross volunteer

The volunteer nurse corps for the Red Cross include an amazing team of registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs), licensed vocational nurses (LVNs) and nurse practitioners (NPs) who undergo many hours of training to become Service Associates (SAs) with the Red Cross’ Disaster Health Services. In addition to learning first aid, providing care at a shelter, psychological first aid, mass casualty education and deployment training, they also learn how to reunify families that have been separated. Once deployed, they not only provide physical assessments of injured victims who may need to be transported to a hospital for a higher level of care but also provide valuable health care education to victims.

One of the many dedicated nurses in the volunteer nurse corps is registered
nurse, Beth Kartman-Orgel, who has been a nurse for 46 years and a volunteer nurse with the Red Cross for six. During this time, she has deployed to many disaster sites including several in Florida after hurricanes and some in California during wildfires.

“Being deployed is a whole lot different than being a regular nurse,” Beth said. “You need to be able to think on your feet, make do with little to no equipment or support and, at times, without electricity, running water or supervisors because there is no internet or phone service.”

Any nurse will tell you that each day brings with it a whole new set of challenges. However, as a volunteer nurse in the Red Cross, those challenges look somewhat different.

“I love the challenges we face on deployments — the different ethnicities,
languages, and belief systems among staff and clients,” she explained. “I always loved camping, so showering in a truck, washing at a sink with bottled water, if need be, using flashlights to make rounds or give meds or change dressings is all in a day’s work.” Undoubtedly, Beth loves what she does for the Red Cross and has also completed Disaster Health Services supervisor training, which she hopes to utilize on her next deployment.

Deploying to a disaster area after a hurricane or wildfire isn’t the only way nurses can be involved with the Red Cross. Registered nurse, Cindy Russo, has been a volunteer with the Red Cross for 30 years and began her journey in Blood Donor Services at blood drives. Here, she completed donor registrations and medical histories and obtained blood pressure and hemoglobin tests before blood donation. In more recent years, Cindy has predominantly worked in Disaster Health Services, assisting victims after home fires to obtain new prescriptions for their medications and necessary medical equipment like wheelchairs, walkers and oxygen machines. In the past, Cindy has also deployed to regions affected by hurricanes and has even helped install smoke alarms in local homes. After 30 years of volunteering, she has found the work to be extremely rewarding.

“Helping those in a time of need is the most rewarding part,” she said. “It is a great extension of what many nurses do every day and is a way to use their skills and talents to help others.”

If you’re a nurse and want to volunteer with the Red Cross, browse through the listings of volunteer opportunities and complete an online volunteer application.

Edited by Glenda Bogar, Red Cross volunteer
Posted by Ryan Lang, Red Cross board member and volunteer

A legacy of giving

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By J.D. Brink, American Red Cross volunteer

I first gave blood because my father had given.

He gave because my sister had leukemia.

He may have given blood before that, but I was too young to know. On Labor Day 1986, my sister Ashley was diagnosed with leukemia at St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Toledo. She was three years old at the time. I was not quite ten.

Ashley and David Brink

Leukemia is a cancer of the bone marrow. Since the bone marrow is where blood cells are manufactured, patients with leukemia have a severe lack of them. Red blood cells deliver oxygen throughout the body. White blood cells fight infections. Platelets stick together to form blood clots so we don’t bleed to death. For those with leukemia, these are all in tragically short supply.

I don’t remember a lot from that time. But I do remember her smile, her dancing, her wonderful personality. I think most of my mental images of Ashley come from pictures and home movies. And in the vast majority of them, Ashley is bald. A smiling, beautiful, three- and four-year old girl with no hair. Her hair loss was caused by the chemotherapy used to treat her cancer. Not only did it take hair, it killed her blood cells too. Because of this, Ashley received many blood transfusions. My dad’s blood was not compatible, so he gave so that others could get what they needed.

Ashley and David Brink

I have retained some memories of my own from that time. The handmade sign that hung in our mudroom, just inside the backdoor, warning of every one of Ashley’s low cell counts, asking them to take their shoes off and minimize germs coming into the house. Another was a big handwritten list of rules for my brother and I from Grandma Brink, taped to the closet door. Guidance when Ashley and our mom spent weeks or months at a children’s hospital in Wisconsin. I remember my Uncle Pork (not the name on his birth certificate) staying with us when both parents were there. And I remember all of us staying at the Milwaukee Ronald McDonald House, which is a wonderful charity that supplies a place for families to live while their children are hospitalized away from home. We even spent a Christmas there.

Ashley had a bone marrow transplant on Halloween, 1987. Since all the nurses were in costume, she insisted on dressing as a witch that day, too.

She passed away January 15, 1988. She was only four years old. Her light shined amazingly bright for someone so young with so much pain in her life.

I’ve had a good cry writing this article, reliving memories that had long been forgotten. It feels good.

My father, David Brink, passed away September 20, 2021. Cancer was a factor. My grandma’s list of rules was still on the closet door when we cleared out his house. In his lifetime, he’d donated gallons of blood. I think it was nine gallons. Maybe twelve? (We know how unreliable my memory is.) He signed up to be a bone marrow donor, too, but was never matched for it. But he would have done it, gladly.

I started donating blood as soon as I was legally able, at 18. My first time was in the high school gym, during my school day.

I give because of everything you’ve just read. So did my dad. I hope my son will someday, too.

If you’d like to make an appointment to donate blood or platelets, please visit redcrossblood.org or call 800-RED CROSS.


https://leukemiarf.org/leukemia/statistics/
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/4365-leukemia

Posted by Ryan Lang, Red Cross board member and volunteer

Celebrating our Volunteers and Supporters this Red Cross Month

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By Samantha Puselski, American Red Cross communications volunteer

For 80 years, March has been declared American Red Cross Month with a presidential proclamation. The tradition started in 1943 with President Franklin D. Roosevelt to recognize all those who have answered the call to help others through the American Red Cross.

This Red Cross Month, we celebrate the work of the Northern Ohio Red Cross volunteers – who make up over 90 percent of the Red Cross’s workforce. We also celebrate the supporters – those who have donated blood, donated funds, taken a course, shared their story or contributed to the mission in other ways. The work of the Red Cross is not possible without those who volunteer, work and provide support.

American Red Cross volunteers Callene Derrick and Jeff Mann

While the Red Cross is a national and international organization, they also have a profound impact locally every single day. Here are just a few facts that represent the history and magnitude of the work that has been done thanks to the support our communities and partners provide:

 The Red Cross and our partners have installed more than 100,000 smoke alarms and helped create more than 37,400 escape plans in Northern Ohio households through the Sound the Alarm campaign.
 The Red Cross responds to disasters providing support to those affected. Most recently the Red Cross provided more than 100 overnight stays and nearly 400 meals to those in East Palestine, Ohio.
 The Red Cross helped survivors of the Titanic.
 Service members in every U.S. conflict since the Spanish-American War have been supported by the Red Cross.
 International Committee of the Red Cross was won the most Nobel Peace Prizes.
 The Red Cross has responded to 3 million U.S. disasters since 1881.

Take Action this Red Cross Month

There are many ways you can support the Red Cross. Celebrate Red Cross Month by supporting your community through one or more of these activities:

 Donate Blood. About 40% of the nation’s blood supply comes from Red Cross blood donors. Blood drives are held every week in locations across Northern Ohio. Find an upcoming drive.
 Become a volunteer. The Red Cross offers many different opportunities to volunteer in Northern Ohio. These roles include administrative support, clinical support, disaster response, IT support, blood donor ambassadors and more.
– Interested in becoming a volunteer? Join the upcoming volunteer information session
on March 10th.
 Make a Financial Donation. Donations of any amount can make a difference. The Red Cross offers several different ways that you can make a financial contribution.
 Take a Class. Get trained and certified in a lifesaving skill. Find a class.

Posted by Ryan Lang, American Red Cross Board Member and communications volunteer