Unique holiday gift ideas...from your local Red Cross!
Dec 1, 2009More than ever, we all want our holiday gifts to really matter. That’s especially important during these economic times.
In this season of hope, your local Red Cross is proud to offer unique giving options for you and everyone on your list!
Read on to see how you can truly save the day, all while supporting the important mission of the Red Cross.
Buy First Aid kits for friends and family
- Show your friends and family that you care: Feel good this holiday by giving a First Aid kit. We stock a variety of kits with the supplies you need to treat minor injuries. Stash one in the closet, one in the car, one at your office. Kits make great gifts for those hard-to-buy-for people on your list! First Aid kits are attractive and easy to tote, and can be picked up at your local Red Cross during business hours, or call 677-7272 for shipping options.
CLICK HERE TO ORDER!
Register someone special for life-saving training
- Every year, our qualified Red Cross instructors teach thousands of local children and adults how to respond to an emergency. When you register someone you love for Red Cross training, you give them the most precious gift of all: the skills and confidence to save a life. We offer a variety of classes in babysitting, First Aid, lifeguarding, CPR/AED, with special classes for Infant & Child CPR. Great for new moms and dads! (Be sure to let your loved one know the course name, date and time.)
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!
Make a gift in honor/in memory of a loved one
- Make a donation to your local Red Cross in honor/in memory of a loved one. Your gift can provide help and hope to families in crisis all year long. What a unique way to recognize a friend, neighbor, family member or co-worker as an alternative to a traditional present! We happily notify this special person or their family that you have made this gift, while keeping your contribution amount confidential. (Remember to tell us their street address, city, state and ZIP code.)
CLICK HERE TO DONATE!
Wear cool Red Cross gear and raise awareness
- Look good and spread the word at the same time! When you and your friends sport authentic American Red Cross gear, you remind others that our organization is here to help. Plus, your purchase supports vital health and safety education programs that make our community a healthier, happier place. Check out our selection of clothes and accessories, including vintage-feel merchandise.
CLICK HERE TO BUY!
Donate blood
- The need is constant, and the gratification is instant. By giving the gift of life-saving blood, you can help protect the health of people in your community. In fact, chances are you or one of your family members will need blood sometime in life. Make an appointment to donate blood by calling 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543), Ext. 1.
CLICK HERE TO FIND DRIVES IN YOUR AREA!
Community Foundation grant will help train disaster volunteers
Nov 30, 2009Red Cross volunteers will be better prepared to respond to disasters, thanks to a recent grant from the Fontaine Earle Fund of the Community Foundation of Central Illinois. The approximately $2,500 grant will allow for the purchase of equipment to be used in disaster training classes, thereby keeping
volunteers up-to-date and ready to help.
Our sincere thanks to the Fontaine Earl Fund of the Community Foundation for this generous grant.
Trained local disaster volunteers are fundamental to an effective and efficient disaster response, both locally and nationally. Last year our volunteers responded to more than 200 local incidents. These disasters included house fires (10 to 15 every month), apartment fires, floods, ice storms, wind storms and hazardous materials incidents.
With new volunteers coming on board, training Disaster Action Team members is a year-round process. Last year, 344 volunteers attended classes, including:
- Disaster Action Team workshop
- Psychological First Aid
- Mass Care: Feeding and Sheltering
- Shelter Operations
- Disaster Kitchen Training
- Individual Client Services
- Financial and Statistical information Management
Local Marine makes it home in time for grandmother’s funeral
Nov 30, 2009“It all started on Oct. 10,” begins Jack Baize, describing how the Red Cross helped his family during a difficult time. That was the day Jack’s mother-in-law passed away.
It also was the Saturday before Columbus Day, which complicated the Peoria man’s efforts to try to reach his son, Sean, to inform him of the death of his beloved grandmother.
The younger Baize had recently joined the Marine Corps, and had just arrived at North Carolina’s Camp Lejeune for military occupational training. The Columbus Day weekend granted 19-year-old Sean an opportunity to take time off on liberty. But he had no cash on hand. And his cell phone was temporarily kaput.
“If you asked for anything to go wrong, it did,” Jack says. “We had no way of locating him because he wasn’t on base.”
After pondering what to do, Jack thought of the Red Cross. As a former law enforcement officer, he knew that the charitable organization runs a free, 24-hour emergency notification program designed to help military families in situations just like this.
“So I called, and the young lady that I spoke with, she just was fantastic. She walked me through everything that I had to do and she got all the information down.”
Not only did the Red Cross emergency message put Jack in touch with Sean, but it also enabled the young man to take leave and return home to central Illinois.
“It all worked out fine,” Jack says. “He got home in time for the funeral the next day. And we couldn’t have been more thrilled or pleased with the service the Red Cross gave us.”
Indeed, “As close as he was to his grandmother ... I thought, ‘Heaven forbid we don’t let him know Grandma has passed and give him the opportunity of trying to get home.’ ”
EMERGENCY HOTLINE
The Red Cross operates a free 24-hour service to relay urgent messages between military personnel and their families.
►Call (800) 696-3873