Disaster Action starts up

Dear Editor:
March is Red Cross Month across the nation. As a Red Cross volunteer, I am proud of what this organization does. It responds to nearly 70,000 disasters a year in this country, providing temporary shelter, food, emotional support and other necessities to those affected. It also gives 24-hour support to members of the military, veterans and their families.

And that’s not all! The Red Cross collects and distributes about 40% of the nation’s blood supply and trains millions of people in first aid, CPR, and other life-saving skills every year. About 90% of all Red Cross workers are volunteers, giving of their time to help others after hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, floods, etc.

Here in Morgan County, unpaid Red Cross volunteers assist with blood drives, respond to fire calls and are deployed to disaster areas. We hope to recruit more volunteers to join the local Disaster Action Team. Should there be a large-scale disaster nearby, many trained helpers would be needed. The Red Cross offers free training classes in specific areas of disaster relief.

Anyone interested in becoming a Red Cross Disaster Action Team member may contact Jenny McCann at 304-258-0529 for more information.

Ruth Wright
Berkeley Springs