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Bay Area Chapter Newsletter
April 2023
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UP FRONT: The 28th annual Red Cross Gala raised over $978,000 to support the mission.
More than 320 supporters, guests and donors joined together on March 24 at the California Academy of Sciences to enjoy a magical evening and raise more than $978,000 to support the Red Cross mission. We’d like to thank our volunteers for dedicating time to this special evening. Take a look at the event photos and step and repeat photos taken by Red Cross volunteer photographers: Albert Becker, Virginia Becker, Roger Bunch and Gabriel Williams.
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NEWS & NOTES: from your local chapter
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Bay Area Chapter Highlights - Here are just a few of the many activities that make the Bay Area Chapter — and the people affiliated with it — so very special:
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Alameda County: A big shout out to our planning committee and all those who helped with setup and clean up for the Alameda County Spring Fling on March 20 including Gina Cauthen, Sharon Alkon-Ramos, Deanna Huie, Ken Lem, John Earthy, Minako McMahon and Eva Marquez! It was a successful event thanks to you! Check out the beautiful party photos here. Thanks to Ashish Mantri, our new Biomedical volunteer, for taking some of these photos.
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Contra Costa County: Many thanks to Gina Cauthen, Sharon Alkon- Ramos, Natalie Manier, Suzanne Garrett, Richard Osicka, Linda Crippin, Tyler Warren, Deanna Huie, Genie Aquino, Elena Miller, Florante Marquez and Eva Marquez for hosting a super successful Spring Fling on March 18! This was a rescheduled from our Winter Holiday Party and over 40 guests attended from all lines of service. It was a great BBQ and company with lots of drawing prizes given out! Check out photos from the party here.
- Contra Costa volunteers are needed for our Saturday, April 15 Sound the Alarm event at Walnut Acres Mobile Home Park in Brentwood. No prior experience is necessary; we’ll provide all the training you’ll need. Click here to sign up or reach out to Natalie Manier for more information.
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San Mateo County: We have perfect weather to gather together this month and support our communities! There are several opportunities to get involved this month, please see the event tracker. Consider joining us for some of our youth presentations, tabling events, or exercises. If you have any questions, please email Juliana Russell-Bustos.
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National Volunteer Week is April 17-23 and the American Red Cross of the Bay Area (ARCBA) Chapter honors the work of its volunteers who give their time to help people in need.
Across the country, more than 300,000 Red Cross volunteers serve their communities by responding to thousands of disasters; supporting the collection of blood to help patients receive the critical care they need; aiding members of the military and their families; helping communities prepare for emergencies around the globe and much more.
National Volunteer Week is a time to honor all of our volunteers for their constant service and support. We are asking volunteer supervisors to consider nominating members of their team who give their time day and night to help their local community. ARCBA volunteers are our true heroes!
Thanks to those that have already submitted nominations for the volunteer awards! We have received 37 nominations (7 Alameda, 8 Contra Costa, 4 San Francisco, 19 San Mateo) but we still need additional nominees for Alameda, Contra Costa and San Francisco counties. Since our recognition event will take place in June we've extended our awards nomination submission from April 15 to April 30. Please nominate volunteers here: Bay Area Award Nomination.
Volunteer supervisors must encourage their leads and coordinators to submit nominations for their teams. Recipients will be selected, and awards will be given out during our chapter's volunteer awards and recognition event which will be held on Saturday, June 3, 2023, at the Hongkong East Ocean Seafood Restaurant. All volunteers (and a guest) from Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco and San Mateo Counties are invited for a luncheon. Please register here if you have not already done so. If you have questions about any of this, email Eva Marquez.
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Our Disaster Action Teams - In March, our Bay Area teams helped numerous individuals and families impacted by disasters.
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Alameda County: 42 DAT cases and 100 clients were assisted with food, emergency housing, clothing and counseling.
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Contra Costa County: 20 DAT cases and 50 clients were assisted with food, emergency housing, clothing and counseling.
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San Francisco County: 58 DAT cases and 86 clients were assisted with food, emergency housing, clothing and counseling.
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San Mateo County: 13 DAT cases and 34 clients were assisted with food, emergency housing, clothing and counseling.
A big thanks to our remarkable disaster responders, assisting these 270 clients in those 133 responses would not be possible without them.
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Biomedical Services THANKS Volunteers! - Did you know that the Red Cross needs to collect about 12,000 blood donations and nearly 3,000 platelet donations every day for hospital patients? Volunteers like you are making a difference at blood drives and donor centers throughout the community.
By volunteering on a shift, it enables us to collect more units of blood by allowing the collections staff to focus on the tasks of health history and blood draw.
Thank you for supporting the biomedical services mission to fulfill the needs of the American people by providing our partners with safe, reliable, cost-effective, and sustainable blood products and related services. Please take a moment to watch this video from our Regional Donor Services Executive, Justin Mueller. |
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OTHER UPDATES: from the American Red Cross
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Join us for Sound the Alarm! - Home fires claim seven lives every day, but you can help change that. Join the Red Cross during a local Sound the Alarm event this April. Experience a rewarding day connecting with other Red Crossers and the families you’ll help.
No prior experience is necessary; we’ll provide all the training you’ll need. Click here to find opportunities to volunteer.
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International Humanitarian Law Discussion: Things My Kids Have Said to Me About Climate Change – Join our next discussion on April 20 from 2 - 3:30 p.m. PT with guest speaker Omar Abou-Samra, Red Cross Director of Preparedness and Climate Adaptation.
As the leader of the Global Disaster Preparedness Center, Omar helps the Red Cross and Red Crescent network solve some of its most pressing humanitarian challenges. Leveraging good practice, research and emerging technology, he has helped expand First Aid adoption, improve early warning systems, enhance humanitarian accountability and institutionalize resilience.
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Apply now to our Youth Services Summer Internship Program!
The applications for the Youth Services Summer Internship Program are live!
Gain valuable work experience, develop leadership skills, and lead your own capstone project. Apply here
Applications are due Fri, May 5. Interviews will be held from May 8 - 22. The internship will run from June 5 to July 28.
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Red Cross and PEANUTS®: Be Kind, Give Blood in April
April is National Volunteer Month, and the American Red Cross is celebrating the millions of people who volunteer to give blood, platelets and plasma throughout the year.
As a thank-you, all who come to give April 1-23 will receive an exclusive Red Cross and PEANUTS T-shirt featuring Snoopy as the coolest beagle in town, Joe Cool, while supplies last.*
Those who come to give April 1-30 will be automatically entered for a chance to win a three-night trip for two to Sonoma County, California. This getaway includes flights, hotel, a $1,000 gift card and special tours of the Charles M. Schulz Museum and Snoopy’s Home Ice, courtesy of Peanuts Worldwide.
Book a time to give by visiting RedCrossBlood.org, downloading the Red Cross Blood Donor App, or calling 1-800-RED CROSS.
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Spanish Translations are Available!
Our Regional Communications Team is looking to submit Spanish translation requests to the new Red Cross Document Translation Service Portal.
This is a great opportunity to update previously translated documents or request new translation projects. The portal is beta-testing since last December and is currently working with Spanish translations only; the portal will be open to other languages in the future.
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