Red Cross NM

11/29/2023

⛑️ Thank you to all who contributed to the success of Giving Tuesday! We are grateful for the support and honored to serve our community. Together, we will continue working towards the mission of the Red Cross.

11/24/2023

For Native American Heritage Day, we chatted with longtime board member for the Southern Arizona Chapter, Francisco Munoz! He is a proud member of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, which is one of the two Tribes located in southern Arizona.

Check out the full story below.

By Georgi Donchetz For Native American Heritage Day, we chatted with longtime board member for the Southern Arizona Chapter, Francisco Munoz. He is a proud member of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, which i…

11/22/2023

Keep these Thanksgiving travel tips in mind to ensure a safe journey:
🥪 Pack snacks, water, and a first aid kit
🗺️ Download offline maps for navigation
⛽ Don't let your gas tank get too low in rural areas
Have a wonderful holiday trip! 🦃✨

11/17/2023

American Red Cross presented at the 2023 New Mexico Emergency Management Conference in Ruidoso, NM. Regional Disaster Officer Merydth Walter gave a presentation on "Emergency Support Function 6 (Mass Care): American Red Cross-National Readiness Initiative.” She said, "Red Cross appreciates the opportunity to present to our Emergency Management partners at this forum. The relationship building and information exchange that occurs at these events is invaluable.”
https://nmaemp.org/

11/16/2023

Give the gift of life this Holiday Season by donating blood. Tesia never knows when her four children might need a blood transfusion. Two were born with sickle cell anemia and two have the traits. Read more of her story below.

https://www.redcross.org/local/az-nm/ways-to-donate/local-giving.html

By Communications Director Melody Birkett “When I had my first son, who’s now 10, I knew I had the trait and then I found out he had the trait,” said Tesia Jackson. “At that time, I wasn’t as aware…

11/15/2023

We'll have our Emergency Response Vehicle out here! Be sure and stop by!

11/15/2023

The Southern AZ Chapter partnered with KGUN9 TV to present hands-only CPR to their staff. Ashley Bevier, Regional Preparedness Lead led the session. Thank you KGUN9 TV for being proactive in learning a life-saving skill.

11/14/2023

This holiday season, think about donating lifesaving blood and making a financial donation. It costs on average $5,000 to host a blood drive. In this video, hear a touching story from Regional Board Member MaRico Tippitt about a friend’s commitment to donating blood.

11/13/2023

🇺🇸 ⛑️ Honoring our brave Veterans at the Gallup, New Mexico Veterans Day Parade was truly a memorable experience! We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all those who have served.

11/11/2023

Thank you for all who turned out at the Roswell Veterans Day Celebration. An honor walk and ceremony was held at Roswell Area Park. Shown in the photo in front of the flags saluting are Disaster Program Specialist Stuart Dietz and Volunteer Pete Martinez.

11/11/2023

🇺🇲 ⛑️ Today, we honor the incredible service and sacrifice veterans have made to our country. We also recognize the integral role many of them play within our mission as volunteers and employees. We honor you and are exceptionally grateful for your time — today and every day.

11/10/2023

RED CROSS FEATURED ON TCM ON SUNDAY NIGHT
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) explores the role of the Red Cross and its support for service members, veterans and their families. Dr. Michael J. Jordan, Vice President for Service to the Armed Forces & International Services at the Red Cross, joins TCM host Dave Karger for a heartfelt discussion about the scenes depicted in the movies, as well as the services offered by the Red Cross to military members and their families. Join us starting at 8 p.m. ET on Sunday, November 12.
https://www.redcross.org/about-us/news-and-events/news/2023/an-evening-with-the-american-red-cross-on-turner-classic-movies.html

https://www.redcross.org/cruz-roja/nosotros/noticias-y-eventos/articulos-de-noticias/2023/una-noche-con-la-cruz-roja-americana-en-turner-classic-movies.html

11/09/2023

Give a gift this holiday season that could help save lives. By donating $21, you can provide one smoke alarm installation to a family in need. Learn more from our Volunteer Services team member, Kassandra, as she shares her story about when she installed her first smoke alarm.



https://www.redcross.org/local/az-nm/ways-to-donate/local-giving.html

11/08/2023

⛑️ 🏠 We had a great Sound the Alarm event in South Valley! We installed 125 smoke alarms in 65 homes making 195 people safer. Thank you to the Bernalillo County Fire Department and the State Fire Marshall's Office for joining us!

11/07/2023

🌎⛑️ Did you know we help military members communicate with their loved ones?

On average, the Red Cross provides 65,439 emergency communications to 117,580 military members and their families! This work is done by our amazing volunteers here in the United States.

Interested in helping military members overseas? Head to https://www.redcross.org/volunteer/become-a-volunteer/service-to-the-armed-forces.html

11/04/2023

Your holiday gifts can bring hope to those in need. Did you know $18.50 provides 1 Red Cross bag filled with vital comfort items for homeless veterans? Regional Board Member Gayle Petillo shares her Red Cross story in this video.
https://www.redcross.org/local/az-nm/ways-to-donate/local-giving.html?fbclid=IwAR0dolh25NVvCD_plbEIgjCdtZh3_sXx_F-IMdUoAmO6M1eo_9K53drPcvc

11/03/2023

Yuma Rural Metro Fire Dept., and the American Red Cross partnered to install 24 free smoke alarms in 12 homes and provide fire safety information, including preparing an escape plan.

11/01/2023

The holiday season is a time for festivities and family. It's also a time to give back. This year, you can give a meaningful gift that helps people through some of life’s toughest moments. Whether you choose to provide meals to disaster survivors or support for service members, your holiday gifts can bring hope to those in need. Give something that means something!

As we close out the year, we invite you to revisit some of your local Red Cross region's proudest and most memorable moments.

10/31/2023

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT – LIZ ALVAREZ

Meet Liz Alvarez, a disaster response volunteer who’s gone on more than 20 deployments! Liz feels that she gets so much more back than she gives and finds it uplifting to see the caring spirit of those who have been affected by disasters as they reach out to help their neighbors.

By Red Cross Communications Volunteer Lois Dupre Elizabeth Alvarez, one of our Region’s volunteers, says that she is continuallyinspired by her Red Cross colleagues. Coming up this month on 6…

10/31/2023

🎃 Happy Halloween!

Make sure to stay safe when trick-o-treating tonight by adding reflective tape or by using glow sticks.

10/28/2023

A couple of our regional Tiffany Circle members were recently recognized at our Washington DC headquarters.

By Public Information Officer Mike Sagara Lynn Sagara is a 52-year-old Red Crosser who has been a paid staffer and volunteer. Lynn is a Board Member, a Past Board Chair, and a Tiffany Circle member…

10/26/2023

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT
Ken Edelblute has been a Regional General Volunteer with the American Red Cross for eight years. During that time Ken has opened or operated over 40 shelters, fed people in remote locations during national disasters, responded to hundreds of house fires, and installed smoke detectors in many homes. Ken especially enjoys helping people get through difficult times. He hopes that others come and join him as a Red Cross volunteer. “Caring is the only skill needed to become a volunteer.” Learn more about becoming a volunteer at redcross.org/volunteer

10/25/2023

Most of the 60,000 emergencies that the Red Cross responds to each year are local, personal disasters like home fires. They may not make the news, but we know they are just as devastating to the families affected.
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Trained and available, Disaster Action Team volunteers are ready to respond to these emergencies, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. From offering a shoulder to cry on, to meeting any immediate needs for shelter or supplies, to connecting people with long term recovery services, our volunteers ensure that families don’t have to face tough times alone.

Join our Disaster Action Team today!!

https://www.redcross.org/volunteer/disaster-action-team.html

10/24/2023

🇺🇸 Did you know we have volunteers on Military bases?

Meet Juan Rivera, a new Service to the Armed Forces volunteer at the Holloman Air Force Base Pharmacy. He was provided with a Red Cross vest, pin, and lanyard, as he begins his task at the pharmacy! Juan is part of the 49MDG's expanding volunteer program and will work at the pharmacy ensuing our service members get the resources they need while on base.

Interested in becoming a volunteer? Head to redcross.org/volunteer

10/19/2023

We are out at the Public Service of New Mexico Safety Day promoting our upcoming smoke alarm walk and teaching hands only CPR!

10/17/2023

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT

Meet Ron and Dawn Winnett, two Red Cross employees that work hard to fulfill the Red Cross mission and have also been married for 12 years!

Check out their Red Cross story in today's blog by Communications Volunteer Mike Sagara!

https://aznmredcrossblogorg.wordpress.com/2023/10/17/employee-spotlight-ron-and-dawn-winnett/

10/17/2023

Did you know there is still a national blood shortage?

Fewer donors than needed gave blood this summer, drawing down the national blood supply & reducing distributions of some of the most needed blood types to hospitals. Please sign up to give now: redcrossblood.org

10/15/2023

HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH
On this last day of Hispanic Heritage Month, we want to recognize Volunteer Services Recruitment Representative Kassandra Roybal. Her Hispanic heritage comes from Spain, through Mexico and New Mexico.

“My story starts when I was in high school and I was part of a Red Cross Club. After I graduated high school and was in college I started working as an instructor in Training Services in 2010, and took a role doing the scheduling and logistics for all the classes in NM. I moved over to financial development in 2012, worked in that department for 8 years and then in 2020 I joined the Volunteer Services as the recruiter here in NM.

“I love and stand by our mission. Over my 13-year career, I have been able to, firsthand, see what we do and I am so proud of everything we do all over the country. My American Red Cross team is my second family!”

10/12/2023

As we continue to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, we want to recognize Raquel Rodriguez in our Biomed Department.

"I love my origin story. I am proud of my family and the person they taught me to be. My mother’s family was in Southern Arizona before it was Southern Arizona. Her Grandmother was Yaqui/Mayan Indian and her Grandfather was full Cahuilla Indian. As a child my mother moved to San Diego, where she also had family there. My maternal grandfather was Spanish, he is where I get my Hazel eyes from. He has been described as a Kirk Douglas doppelgänger and I agree. My mother and father met and married in 1967, in Oceanside, California, where I was born. My father’s family was in California while it was still Mexico. My father’s grandfather was Governor of Baja California before WWI. I have also heard stories of his family fighting with Pancho Villa, of course this was going on during the Mexican Revolution.

"I came to the Red Cross as Talent Acquisition Advisor and after 2 years in this role, I moved to Donor Services Recruitment.

"I love being part of something larger than myself. I enjoy talking and developing lasting sponsor relationships in our community to support our blood collections."

10/11/2023

This past weekend, an amazing group of women leaders and philanthropists gathered at the 2023 American Red Cross Tiffany Circle National Summit in Washington, D.C., to support the American Red Cross and its humanitarian mission.

The Tiffany Circle is a community of women leaders who advance the American Red Cross mission to prevent and alleviate human suffering through a focused investment of time, talent, and treasure by engaging and embracing women locally, nationally, and internationally. Through their philanthropy, volunteerism, and influence, they are an incredible force for good in the world, and they are making real changes in the lives of others.

Representing the AZ/NM Region, Tiffany Circle members Pat Farmer and Lynn Sagara are pictured outside the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture with the Washington Monument in the background.

10/10/2023

For World Mental Health Day, we spoke with Disaster Spiritual Care Volunteer, Pat Simmons. Pat has responded to 35 different Disaster Responses, the Maui Wildfires and Hurricane Ian are to name a few.

Our volunteers work hard with those who have been affected by disasters and stress the importance of taking care of one's mental health.

Learn more about being a Disaster Spiritual Care Volunteer in today's blog!

https://aznmredcrossblogorg.wordpress.com/2023/10/10/mental-health-in-the-face-of-disaster/

10/09/2023

Happy Indigenous People's Day from a few of our rockstar volunteers in Arizona and New Mexico!

10/07/2023

October is Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) Awareness Month.

10/06/2023

We had a great time teaching some New Mexico board members CPR!

CPR is a lifesaving skill that everyone should learn. Train for the moments that matter and head to redcross.org/take-a-class to learn more!

10/05/2023

🇲🇽 Happy Hispanic Heritage Month from Red Cross CEO, Edgar R. Olivo (center)!

Edgar is a first born Mexican-American with his family originating in Zacatecas, Mexico. He joined as a Board Member for the Phoenix Chapter before transitioning to the role of CEO, but his earliest memory of the Red Cross was at a CPR class he took in High School before graduating in Casa Grande, Arizona.

When asked why he loves working at the Red Cross, Edgar said, “I love being in a position that can create opportunities for our community to do good humanitarian work and support each other during a time when extreme weather events are disrupting our lives. Being a Red Crosser gives me the tools to empower my community and build resiliency in our region.”

10/04/2023

Meet Beth Anderson, former Wisconsin volunteer turned volunteer Red Cross Club Coordinator for Arizona and New Mexico!

What would Beth tell someone who has thought about volunteering or giving to the Red Cross but hasn’t gone forward? “It will renew your faith in humanity particularly if you have become very cynical about what the world is coming to.”

Check out the rest of the story with the link!

Thank you to Communications Volunteer Shawna Sealander for the story.

By Communications Volunteer Shawna Sealander Meet Beth Anderson, American Red Cross volunteer. She was born and raised in Wisconsin, and worked 30 years in the senior housing business ensuring deli…

09/28/2023

Meet the Executive Director of the Southern Arizona Chapter, Courtney Slanaker!

"Courtney leads paid staff and volunteers at the Red Cross with dedication to the organization’s mission of easing human suffering. When asked about her leadership style, the look on her face says it all."

Check out todays blog by Volunteer Communications Volunteer Trudy Thompson-Shumaker!

https://aznmredcrossblogorg.wordpress.com/2023/09/28/courtney-slanaker-leads-the-tucson-and-southern-arizona-red-cross-and-she-can-also-drive-a-forklift/