Longtime Red Cross Volunteer Remembers Volunteering with her Husband

Betty and Olen's service pins and newspaper clippings from The Daily Herald, provided by Betty Bailey

By Briana Phillips, American Red Cross volunteer

When Betty Bailey began volunteering with the Red Cross, she thought it would be a great way to keep up her certification as a swim instructor. Little did she know that her stint of volunteering would turn into 15 years of swim teaching alongside her husband, Olen. 

In 1985, the couple had just moved to Columbia, Tennessee. They were both active in other community efforts, but Betty encouraged Olen to volunteer with her at the Red Cross. “We did everything together,” Betty remembered. “If I was interested in being a part of something, Olen would say to me, ‘I may as well do it with you.’ We liked to support each other's interests in that way.” 

The couple soon started teaching beginner and advanced lessons to children and didn’t look back. They began to feel like teaching swimming to young children was an important initiative in their community.  

“We hated seeing news of another local kid that drowned in the lake because they couldn’t swim,” Betty said. “No one should be at risk of drowning. It’s a death that is absolutely avoidable.”   

Betty and Olen taught a generation of kids for 15 years and received Red Cross service pins to honor their efforts. They would have continued volunteering but needed to step away from the job due to health reasons.  

Since Olen’s recent passing at 102, Betty has appreciated their time at the Red Cross even more. “It was so fun to do it together,” she said. “I honestly think we got more out of it than the kids did!” 

As Betty reminisced on their time with the Red Cross, she wanted to encourage others to follow her and Olen’s legacy. “If you can, get up and do something that you love for someone else. In my experience, I found out that the volunteers themselves get more benefits from the volunteering than the recipients.” 

If you’re interested in a volunteer position, please visit the Red Cross website at RedCross.org/Volunteer.