The first decade of the new millennium is almost over – and the group Save the Children is dubbing it the “Disaster Decade,” at least as far as the United States is concerned. From September 11, 2001 through present day, we’ve seen wildfires, numerous hurricanes, and mass school shootings. So Save the Children hired a research firm to look at the impact of disasters on children – and to see how all 50 states and the District of Columbia fared in making sure children are protected.

Red Cross is in the business of providing relief to victims of disasters and helping people prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies.

On Saturday, June 27^th, the Omega Center in St. Louis City and the Jackie Joyner Kersee Center in East St. Louis, IL served as designated sites for neighbors and friends to help Red Cross fulfill its mission – respond to emergencies.

The community came out to give life-sustaining blood – usually in low supply during summer months, and donors visited our booth to learn about the programs, services, and volunteer opportunities at the Chapter.

For the next few days, the St. Louis Area Chapter is playing host to a special guest -- Jerry DeFrancisco, the President of Humanitarian Services for the American National Red Cross. 

(Picture after the jump)...

There’s something about the word ‘lifeguard’ that instantly elicits flashbacks of David Hasselhoff patrolling the beach with his lifesaving ladies-their distinguished red bathing suits, sun-bleached hair, sporty yellow jeeps. If I put a conch shell up to my ear I’m sure I could hear ”I’ll be ready” singing in the distance. It’s something I won’t deny; I was a Baywatch fan. I loved that these “everyday superheroes” rescued people from shark-attacks, heart-attacks, and every other attack in between. For me, Baywatch made lifeguarding cool. And I almost forgot just how cool lifeguards really are. That is, until yesterday…

Not that I am admitting to playing computer games at work, but I found a very cool online game that teaches about earthquake safety. Even though we aren't on the coast, St. Louis is near the New Madrid Fault so we need to take this stuff seriously.

The game is called "Drop! Cover! Hold On!" The object of the game is to secure all the necessary items in the room before an earthquake hits - and one could hit at any time!

Have you heard about the new EHL program in International Services? Do you know how this new program differs from the existing IHL program? Are you familiar with either of these acronyms?

Well, let me be the first to admit that I too find myself lost in a wilderness of jargon and acronyms especially when learning about programs in other departments. But there’s very little that goes on in any department here at the Red Cross that isn’t in some way significant to the big picture, especially to the services we provide locally.

So if you know that IHL stands for “International Humanitarian Law” you might then ask the question, how is this important to the work of the Red Cross here at home? It may be trite to say, “It’s a small world after all”, but it is true that what happens “over there” is increasingly felt “over here”.

IHL is a body...

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This is a little something that I wrote and someone told me I should share with some people at the American Red Cross because it may remind some of the volunteers and even staff that even the smallest tasks that we do for others can have a HUGE impact.

I had cancer when I was in the 9th grade and I have started writing a book of short stories about my experiences with the horrible “C word.” When I was thinking of some of the different stories that I wanted to include in this book, one of the first moments that always comes to mind for me is the one when I was getting my chemotherapy treatments right around Christmas time. I have shared this story with a few family members and I have shared it with a couple volunteers here at the Jefferson County Service Center so..... I thought I would share it with those of you that have some free time and are willing to read this.

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Just a quick heads up: country singer (and Missouri native) Sara Evans will perform tonight in St. Louis at the All-Star Game. In case you didn’t know, Sara is a member of the American Red Cross Celebrity Cabinet. Along with other musicians, actors, and athletes, Sara helps support the Red Cross mission of preparing, preventing and responding to disasters by donating her time and skill to help highlight important Red Cross efforts.

Back in April, we announced a very exciting milestone for the Red Cross Ready Rating Program - Enterprise Rent-A-Car joined as our 100th Member. Today, I am excited to report we have surpassed our goal of 130 Members by June 30, 2009! Congratulations to the 134 businesses, organizations and schools that have committed to becoming better prepared. Click here for the complete list of Ready Rating Members.

Support the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter by dining out at Chili's Grill & Bar the entire month of July! Print the coupon and bring with you to any participating Chili's. Ten percent of your total purchase will be donated to the St. Louis Area Chapter.  Locations after the jump...

I just love these kinds of stories. Even though most people complain that TV news (especially local news) only covers "bad" stories involving crime and mischief, there are those special moments when TV has the power to show the best side of humanity. And I especially enjoy hearing local "good news" stories.

Last night, KTVI Fox 2's Jeff Bernthal reported on a Belleville man who used CPR to save a toddler who nearly drowned. The little girl was playing in a large inflatable pool in her backyard - and her floatie slipped off. When neighbor Dave Ludgate heard screaming - he rushed next door and knew exactly what to do. Watch the story for yourself:

Lately there have been many house fires in the area. Last Friday was no different; another family lost their home and all their belongings. Sometimes we feel so helpless assisting these people as we supply them housing, clothing, and food. We cannot bring back the lost memories which were in photographs or a special drawing made by a child. We see many tears shed and the fear of not knowing what comes next.

As someone with serious iPhone envy, I’ve paid attention to some of the cooler applications, or “apps” as they are called, that have been released. There’s an app to find a house to buy; an app to determine if the picture you are hanging is level, and even an app to help you lose weight. But I was still surprised when I saw a headline today about an iPhone app to learn CPR.

It was developed in the Seattle area, and although I can’t view it (‘cause I don’t have a iPhone) it apparently contains short 1-2 minute videos instructing someone how to perform CPR.

Chances are, you’ve seen at least a few of the ad nauseum commercials and public service announcements about the “D-TV Switch” – when television stations all over the country are switching their signals from “analog” to “digital.” While most people are covered by either cable or satellite (who will handle all the technical aspects of the change over for their customers) there are still millions of Americans who will be left without a TV signal.

The biggest concern for the Red Cross – keeping people informed during severe weather. Already in St. Louis this week, we’ve seen several rounds of strong storms and even tornadoes. It is also hurricane season, which impacts millions living along the coast.

This is no lie: the number of fatal home fires in Missouri is up significantly from last year. In 2008, the state fire marshal investigated 60 fatal fires all year. So far in 2009, the state has already had 50 fatal fires, and there are still six more months to go.

The number one cause of home fires: careless smoking. So if you do smoke, make sure you put those cigarettes out completely.

It is Friday, so I decided to have a little fun and see what would happen if I put our blog into a wordle. What's a wordle? It's a "word cloud" that should in varying propotions what words appear on a blog. So, here is ours (after the jump):

In less than 72 hours Hurricane Season will begin, and already an early arrival along the eastern coastline. Tropical Depression 1 looks to make only a “hello” wave and move off to sea.   Why am I thinking of Hurricane Season in St. Louis? Last year the remnants of Ike came through causing quite a stir, and the subsequent activation of even more Red Cross volunteers. Several volunteers were already in Texas and Louisiana assisting with Ike and Gustav, not expecting Ike to come into their backyard! The Red Cross was able to support the multiple, simultaneous disasters because of a dedicated group of volunteers who were willing to do their part helping their communities. 

Hi, my name is Lindi, and I'm a student at MICDS, a school located in St. Louis. I've been a member of the Red Cross Youth Corps since freshman year, and about a month ago, two friends/fellow youth corps members and I were invited to attend the National Youth Institute in Orlando, Florida. The NYI is a two-day conference where Red Cross youth get a chance to meet, network, and attend lectures and discussions about Red Cross history, leadership skills, and fundraising skills. We learned a lot from this experience, and even though I'm blogging about it two month late, the lessons I learned were so meaningful and memorable that I can still remember the top ten things that I learned from the trip:

All the votes are tallied, and the results are in: the Red Cross won 26 percent of the vote in the Target “Bullseye Gives” Facebook campaign! That means thanks to your more than 75,000 votes, the Red Cross will get $793,942. It was amazing to see how just through a viral e-mail campaign, the Red Cross was able to rally such amazing support from volunteers, donors, staff members and their friends. Facebook really is the new "word of mouth," isn't it?

After visiting family in Tulsa over the first weekend in May, I was called to be deployed to Fredericktown, MO for a disaster assignment: there were power outages due to storms. I went to Fredericktown with Roland Jackson, another Red Cross volunteer, on the ERV (Emergency Response Vehicle) where we met other Red Cross volunteers.

We first went to the feeding site that was at the First Baptist Church of Fredericktown, where the Red Cross had partnered with the Division of Family Services to provide meals. We served over 10,000 meals and snacks for the week I was in Fredericktown. In addition to the feeding site, services provided by the American Red Cross included distributing bulk items such as clean up kits, rakes, shovels and gloves.



The American Red Cross also sent outreach teams into the affected communities. The partnerships we saw were amazing!...

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Even though I work with pools year-round – teaching classes, inspecting facilities, training lifeguards, etc. – this is the time of year when everyone says, “Wow – I bet you sure are busy now that summer is almost here!”

Even though our Aquatics team is busy throughout the year, it’s true that there is an increased sense of energy from Memorial Day to Labor Day. That’s when most public pools open their gates, and kids around St. Louis flock to the water slides, diving boards and deep ends. And since May is Water Safety Month, I thought it might be a good time to blog about when parents should teach their kids to swim.

The Red Cross offers learn-to-swim classes for kids of all ages, but the youngest you can enroll is 6 months of age. That might seem a little too young to really learn anything, but it is a good idea to get kids...

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Congratulations!  With 5 days left in the Bullseye Gives campaign, the Red Cross has received more than 52,000 votes.

But as of this morning, the Red Cross is in 2^nd place, trailing to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital by just 1%. Every vote increases our share of the $3 million contribution. Every vote helps people preparing for and facing emergencies. Your vote empowers you to change lives today.

Did you know that every 24 hours, an average of 21,000 people receive a blood transfusion from a Red Cross donor?  Let’s get 21,000 votes today in their honor. Login or signup to Facebook and go to http://www.facebook.com/target.

Did you ever go on a field trip to the Zoo or the Science Center? Spring was always the best time of year when I was in school because it was when we got to go on field trips to every sight and sound that St. Louis had to offer. But this past week, a new field trip was taken by our St. Louis Area Chapter YouthCorps members. Eleven of our YouthCorps members participated in a "CPR Day."

You might be asking yourself, "What is CPR Day?" Simply put, YouthCorps students devote a day to learning CPR and First Aid. What they may not realize is that by the end of the day they have learned how to prevent injuries, prepared themselves for an emergency, and...

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Just saw this hilarious "silent movie" that the folks at National Red Cross posted on Youtube.

Have you voted for the Red Cross on Facebook yet? Your vote = your donation. Right now, each vote is worth more than $30. Remember, you can vote once a day until May 25. The more votes we get, the more funding we receive to help people who need immediate relief and lifesaving assistance—in our community, across the country and around the world.

There’s no doubt about it, St. Louis is already home to one entire team of baseball All-Stars. Not to mention we’re about to be visited by even more when Busch Stadium plays host to the 2009 Major League Baseball All-Star game on July 14th.

But that’s on the field.

Mother Nature gave us another reminder last night of just how violent the springtime can be. A severe line of storms tore through four states, including Missouri, spawning tornadoes. One in particular killed three people near Kirksville (the home of Truman State University).

The damage is extensive. Reports indicate that 30-40 homes are damaged, as well as a large car dealership. You can follow news reports of the tornado cleanup via Google.

Of course, the Red Cross is there. Right now, volunteers from the Capital Area Chapter and the North Central Chapter are working...

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Ok, Red Crossers.... now is your chance to help raise millions of dollars without spending a dime.

From now through May 25, Target is giving you the power to decide where a $3 million charitable donation will go. The American Red Cross is one of ten non-profit organizations competing for a portion of the multi-million dollar gift.

Target’s Bullseye Gives campaign is running through Facebook, where visitors can vote once a day, every day, for the charity of their choice.

Last night, the St. Louis Area Chapter held a fun event for some of our best donors, including members of the Clara Barton Society, the Legacy Society and our Corporate Partners. There was a Carnival theme, and the interactive "exhibits" showed off a variety of the services the Red Cross provides the Greater St. Louis community.

Check out the photo gallery from the night! And if you want to learn more about becoming a Clara Barton Society member, email Cathy Sullivan or call her at (314) 516-2290.

There is no "typical disaster" when on the Disaster Action Team (DAT). We usually deal with fires, although last spring we responded to quite a few victims of flash flooding. Many fires fall into some basic category. Kitchen fires are fairly common in many communities.  When we arrive we often have to help our client deal with their own self anger at having turned on the wrong burner or having left a pot on the stove and forgotten it.  If the food is unusable because of the kitchen fire we usually give the client financial assistance for a small amount of food until they can get their lives and kitchen straightened out. Electrical fires many times destroy bedrooms and other rooms in the house. We often need to provide "psychological first aid" to help the client come to grips with the randomness of disasters. When clothing is destroyed we often provide financial assistance to purchase some replacement clothing - many times our clients are standing outside their home in their "jammies and house slippers".  Fires are the usual responses for the DAT.

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When hunger pains start coming around on Tuesday, May 12, grab a coworker for lunch or a friend for dinner and head to Culver’s to help the Red Cross. Next Tuesday, your neighborhood Culver’s will donate 10% of all sales to the American Red Cross St. Louis Area Chapter. Enjoy a delicious meal, benefit a great local cause and feel good all over.

With the recent wave of concern over the H1N1 (swine flu) virus, I’m sure many of us find ourselves swaying between concern for what it means for us on one hand and information overload on the other. Clearly we have health concerns close to home, but taking precautions can help us fight the flu.

However, around the world, there are still thousands of children who die every year from an all too common and very manageable disease – the measles. This loss of life is made all the more tragic as this is a vaccine preventable death, with the vaccine costing less than one dollar. But to these children and their families, one dollar is one too much.

That’s where the Measles Initiative...

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On a day like today, I can only wish it was a little sunnier and warmer so I could swim outside. Just a few more weeks and the pools will be opening, and who better to talk with about water safety than Red Cross aquatic specialists, Laurie and Kathy. They decided to buddy up to bring you their top five water safety suggestions. Check it out.

While all the local TV stations did segements last night about our Lifesaver Awards ceremonies, today John Fuller did another segment on KPLR's Noon newscast. Check it out:

I confess right now that my least favorite part about teaching First Aid and/or CPR has always been the segment on handwashing. That’s because the students’ annoyance is absolutely palpable.  Don’t get me wrong, they’re always very polite, but those 12 sets of eyes on any given day make clear their feelings on the subject: “You gotta be kidding! This is a lifesaving skill? Come on… let’s get on to the good stuff I’m paying for.”  

So, “Yes,” I sheepishly nod and say, “handwashing is a standard precaution in the prevention of disease transmission.” In fact, this simple effort is so important, there’s a 4-color skill-sheet in the book to describe the process. Then, despite their eye-rolling, I ask the class to turn to page 10 in their workbooks (“Grumble, grumble. Tell me something I didn’t know. Grumble, grumble,” I imagine the class protesting in unison. )

I bravely proceed to describe and demonstrate the correct way to wash one’s hands. With a straight face:

Turn on the water

Wet...

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The first time I went to Orlando, Florida I was about 5 years old and I remember two things about our trip. The first thing I remember was a pool at the hotel shaped like Mickey Mouse’s head; the second, a rollercoaster ride that scared me because I thought a train was heading straight at our rollercoaster (although it was just a light with a recording of train horns blowing). Many years have past since then, and this month I was given the opportunity to return to Orlando with 3 of our Chapter’s youth volunteers in order to attend the 4th Annual National Youth Institute (NYI). The weather was great but the speakers, opportunities for networking and leadership skills our youth volunteers and I learned for the 3 days were fantastic.

This year’s theme for NYI was “Empower our Red Cross.” Sessions included a town hall meeting with...

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This morning, the number of confirmed cases of swine flu stands at 91, according to the CDC. And while officially, Missouri and Illinois have not confirmed any cases of the H1N1 virus, there are suspected cases in both the Kansas City and Chicago areas.

Yesterday, the World Health Organization raised its Pandemic Alert Level to a 5 (on a scale of 6). Essentially, that means that the threat of a pandemic is imminent. But at this point, the situation is still classified as an outbreak. But the WHO is urging all countries...

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This morning, there are two big developments in the spread of swine flu. First, there are reports that “probable swine flu” is being reported in Illinois. The state health department says more than one case is being sent to federal health officials for confirmation. According to the Associated Press, “probable” means the Illinois Department of Public health has conducted tests on patients showing swine flu symptoms. One “probable” case is at a Chicago-area school. The school is being closed today.

The second big development is the U.S. is reporting its first swine flu-related death. This morning, the CDC confirmed a 23-month-old child...

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A virus can spread fast -- but hopefully, we can spread information even faster. Here are some common questions I've heard today in relation to the swine flu outbreak:

1. What is a “Health Emergency?”

The World Health Organization (WHO) is the directing and coordinating authority for health within the United Nations system. It is responsible for providing leadership on global health matters and monitoring and assessing health trends among other things. 

In response to the recent cases of swine influenza, the WHO has reviewed available data on the current situation and advised that many questions are still unanswered. Nevertheless, the WHO believes that the current situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. This means that the WHO is recommending that all countries...

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I am an Aquatic Volunteer for the American Red Cross Saint Louis Area Chapter. Watching my students achieve what they thought was “the impossible” has brought me great joy. When teaching there is nothing that pleases me more than to hear “I did it!” and seeing the students strive for more. I believe that the Red Cross Aquatics Programs teach far more than the details of how to swim and the basics of water safety; they contains the dreams of an athlete unaware of their potential, the building blocks for heightened self-esteem, gifts of lifesaving skills, compassion and empathy, courage and hope. Teaching aquatics for the Red Cross has allowed me to make my passion for water and teaching contagious and still lets me be a student; taking in knowledge from each experience I have. I am ever grateful for the opportunities Kathy, Ryan, Laurie, Joyce and all of my students have given me over the years.

 

Kelly is an Aquatics volunteer for the St. Louis Area Chapter.

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Although the swine flu virus has been an issue in Mexico for several weeks, now cases of the disease have made their way into the U.S., and therefore, the news. In case you haven’t heard, here is what is happening:

I joined the American Red Cross when my husband accepted a job at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois in September 1997.  My children were in school but I wanted the flexibility to not work when they were off for holidays and teacher days.  I started working in Armed Forces Emergency Communications (now called Emergency Communications Services).  I would help active duty servicemen and their families keep in touch and verify emergencies to allow the serviceman to return for medical emergencies and funerals.  Before cell phones, the American Red Cross message could be the first notification of events from births to deaths.

My Red Cross story began with a First Aid/CPR/AED course I took after moving to St. Louis. I had been practicing medicine for 34 years and decided to retire. I determined that I needed some activities to keep busy in St. Louis, and while I was already involved in Boy Scouting, it didn't quite fill the void. Because of my job, I was accustomed to dispensing preventative medicine and I saw teaching Red Cross courses as a way to continue helping the public. I was also attracted to their programs since they were an extension of what I was already aware of and practicing. In this way, I would be able to remain in contact with the general public and add to their wellbeing. And as an added bonus, my connection with Scouting gave me the opportunity to teach first aid to the young boys and hopefully give them an understanding of what they were learning. With my training, I was able to present the material in a well organized way and hope that much of the material would remain with the student. 

I started volunteering at the West County donor center in December, 2008. Blood donors are very dear to my heart because I am a blood recipient. I am a 16-year Leukemia survivor who has received 33 blood transfusions, equaling 66 units of blood. All of the blood came through the American Red Cross.

Imagine you are an 8-year-old girl spending the day at your grandmother’s house in Austria. It’s May of 1940 and you have come to say goodbye to your cousins. Tomorrow you are leaving your home and life behind in an attempt to escape Nazi persecution. You know your goodbyes are only temporary, though. You will be reunited with your cousins and be back to playing make-believe before you know it. Or at least that’s what you think…

When I was anticipating retirement, I knew that I wanted to use my time in service to others.  I called several organizations to see what we had to offer each other.  The Red Cross was one of the few to return my call. I had training courses all lined up to fit my schedule and along came Hurricane Katrina.  I called the Red Cross and said "I have no training, but could you use a warm body?"  I was told to come in the next day to begin one day's worth of on the job training as a case worker. I spent the next three weeks doing case work and financial assistance paperwork here in St. Louis and THEN got my official training. I better understood the classroom training with my first hand knowledge! 

“Everybody can be great, because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” ~Martin Luther King, Jr.

I love this quote! It’s so simple and yet so obvious, “anyone can volunteer” and it’s true…anyone can make a difference in the lives of others. The volunteers here at the St. Louis Area Chapter, without a doubt, have “hearts full of grace” and souls “generated by love.” I have never met a more giving, caring, and committed group of people, not to mention intelligent, funny, resourceful, good-humored and creative! We definitely have some who could explain the second theory of thermodynamics in their sleep, and others who can not only make subject and verb agree, they can get cats and dogs to agree!

I don’t think there is any way I can say “Thank You” enough to all of our volunteers. Words seem so inadequate when you’ve seen a DAT volunteer sit down with a fire victim and help them find a safe place to stay for the night, or when you see a Water Safety Instructor finally get a child who was afraid to put more than their foot in the pool to put their entire face in the water. Moment like these (and many, many more!) are what makes volunteers so vital to our mission here at the Red Cross and valuable to our community.

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Mark your calendars! On Thursday, April 30, over 130 St. Louis area restaurants will be participating in the annual Dining Out for Life event. Restaurants will donate 25-100% of their proceeds to benefit St. Louis Effort for AIDS.

Founded in 1985 by a group of concerned volunteers, Saint Louis Effort for AIDS (EFA) began with the purpose of making a difference in the lives of individuals dying from complications due to AIDS.  Today, EFA is one of the leading AIDS Service Organizations in the metropolitan area, offering prevention education, care referral, case management, free testing by appointment, volunteer opportunities and a variety of support programs.  Their mission is to provide education on the prevention of HIV/AIDS and comprehensive support services for individuals affected by the disease, much like what the American Red Cross does with its own messages about HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

We hit a milestone this week! We now have over 100 members in the Red Cross Ready Rating Program. Enterprise Rent-A-Car Company was officially our 100^th member. Our friends at Enterprise are excited to be part of this program because they care about the safety of their employees and they want to be prepared for emergencies because, let’s face it, emergencies are inevitable.

What is the Ready Rating Program? It’s a new web-based preparedness program developed right here in St. Louis that helps businesses, organizations and schools prepare for emergencies.