Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Letter from East Tennessee Executive Director Michelle Hankes, June 2016

“One Red Cross.”

You may have heard this phrase recently. Although it sounds obvious, do you really know what it means?  Legally, the American Red Cross is a single fiscal entity operating under a nationally-held 501(c)3 document.  While there are local chapters that organize volunteers and deliver the mission within their neighborhoods, all of us are part of that national American Red Cross.

But it's MORE than just legal paperwork.  It refers to the fact that when a large disaster strikes one of us, we all jump to support it by transferring people, resources and donations to where families are suffering. It means that when a soldier deployed in Afghanistan has a family emergency, Red Cross Service to Armed Forces staff will work together to bring him home. It means that if you take CPR in East Tennessee, you can be assured that you're getting the same high-quality training that people in Chicago or Washington D.C. receive.

We live in a world where people travel and move from place to place throughout their lives. Many of us have lived in multiple states and cities. We are diverse in our beliefs, our histories and our cultures.  But when the Red Cross steps up, we are all welcome. We can be united in a mission to provide help for people struck by disaster.

We are One Red Cross.

No comments:

Post a Comment