Red Cross Celebrates National Volunteer Week

National Volunteer Week is April 12-18 and the American Red Cross Tennessee Region is honoring its volunteers who give their time to help people in need.

Across the United States, hundreds of thousands of volunteers are part of the Red Cross. They respond to fires, teach lifesaving skills like First Aid and CPR, volunteer at Veterans Hospitals, help staff blood drives and so much more. Here in the Tennessee, 7,407 volunteers help the community.

“We want to take this time during Volunteer Week to thank our volunteers for their service,” said Joel Sullivan, Regional Executive. “They help us fulfill our lifesaving mission every day, and we are overwhelmed with gratitude for their service.”

Last year, Tennessee area Red Cross volunteers provided food, shelter, comfort and hope to 2,778 local families who faced emergency situations. They trained 101,267 people in lifesaving skills and provided 12,364 services to military members, veterans and their families.

The Red Cross invites members of the community to sign up today and become a Red Cross volunteer. There are many ways people can get involved. Go to redcross.org to learn more about volunteer opportunities and how to submit a volunteer application.

The Red Cross Home Fire Preparedness Campaign offers another way to volunteer and help reduce the number of home fire injuries and deaths in the area. Volunteers are going door-to-door in neighborhoods at high risk for fires to install smoke alarms and teach people about home fire safety.