Honoring our veterans and their loved ones this Veterans Day and every day

This Veterans Day, the American Red Cross is honoring veterans and recognizing the special role that caregivers play in their care. 

While many may recognize the American Red Cross as an organization that collects and distributes blood products and responds to local and national disasters, its Service to the Armed Forces program (SAF) is a prominent and valuable asset in the wide scope of services the Red Cross provides within any given community. In fact, it was on the Civil War battlefields that American Red Cross founder, Clara Barton, embraced the vision she had for the organization as she cared for and nursed wounded soldiers. 

Today, the American Red Cross continues to serve the U.S. Military community from the time a service member takes the oath to navigating life as a veteran.

In the Western New York region alone, the Red Cross provided 3,487 case services to veterans and family members during the last fiscal year. On a global perspective, each year, the Red Cross provides more than 500,000 services to members of the military, veterans and their families across the country and around the world.

• In times of emergency, the Red Cross helps military families communicate with their loved ones and facilitates their return home through our Hero Care Network, which is available online, by phone, through a mobile app or in person, 24 hours a day.
• A variety of free resiliency workshops are offered, in person and online, to provide active military, veterans and their families with effective tools for facing challenges and stress.
• Red Cross medical and non-medical volunteers provide care, comfort and therapy items at veteran hospitals and military treatment facilities.
• Stateside the Red Cross has a presence on all military installations.  It also offers programs and services on-site at more than 140 military medical facilities and 170 veteran care facilities worldwide.   

PROVIDING SUPPORT FOR CAREGIVERS 

Serving more than 8,200 caregivers worldwide, the Military Veteran Caregiver Network (MVCN), one of many programs under the SAF umbrella, offers caregivers peer mentors, peer support groups, an online community as well as mental health, wellness and resiliency workshops. The network seeks to decrease feelings of isolation, and increase feelings of connection, hope and well-being.

The MVCN provides caregivers the ability to connect in a confidential environment that’s best for them. Our peer mentor program helps meet the specific needs of caregivers one-on-one, while peer support groups connect caregivers facing similar challenges. We offer secure online caregiver only communities to create a supportive network that is accessible without having to leave home.

In western New York, veterans and their caregivers report that the compounding effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the recent withdrawal from Afghanistan have created additional stressors. 

In recent months, MVCN saw an increase in the use of our Hero Care Resource Directory, which provides access to over 800 resources in every zip code in America specifically designed for veterans, service members, caregivers and their families. 

WHAT YOU CAN DO 

Many Red Cross volunteers are veterans who continue to support their communities after their active duty service ends. Also, about 6% of Red Cross employees include transitioning military or veterans – from nurses to logisticians, emergency management experts, project managers and preparedness experts, as well as a number of veterans in leadership roles at local Red Cross chapters across the country.

Tens of thousands of Red Cross volunteers also serve in Veterans Administration (VA) and military hospitals across the nation and around the world. These volunteers support such areas as rehabilitation, recreation, administration, and personal services to the men and women who are now cared for each day in these facilities. To learn more about how you can give back in your community this Veterans Day, visit redcross.org/volunteer.

This Weekend: Turn, Test and Prevent Home Fires with the Red Cross

This weekend, as we turn our clocks back in preparation of the end of daylight saving time, the American Red Cross of Western New York encourages everyone to use this time to test their smoke alarms.

Home fires are the nation's most frequent disaster and tragically take seven lives every day. That's why it's critical to take action now in order to keep you and your loved ones safe, especially since the threat of home fires increases with the holidays and colder weather.

In the past year alone, Red Cross volunteers within the region responded to nearly 900 home fires. While the Red Cross is always there in times of disaster, there are also a few simple steps that you can take this weekend to help protect your loved ones to help prevent home fires. 

During a fire, early warning from a working smoke alarm plus a fire escape plan that has been practiced regularly can save lives. As the clocks “fall back” when daylight saving time ends on Sunday, November 7, it’s also the perfect time to test your smoke alarms and replace the batteries if needed.

In addition to testing your smoke alarms this weekend, follow these three steps get your home ready:

1. Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, including inside and outside bedrooms and sleeping areas.  
2. Replace smoke alarms that are 10 years or older. Components such as sensors can become less sensitive over time. Follow your alarm's manufacturer instructions.  
3. Practice your two-minute home fire escape plan. Make sure everyone in your household can get out in less than two minutes — that’s the amount of time you may have to escape a burning home before it’s too late. Include at least two ways to get out of every room and select a meeting spot at a safe distance away from your home, such as your neighbor’s home or landmark like a specific tree in your front yard, where everyone can meet.

HOME FIRE CAMPAIGN SAVES 1,000+ LIVES Since October 2014, the Red Cross Home Fire Campaign with community partners has saved at least 1,048 lives — including 43 in our region — by educating families about fire safety, helping them create escape plans and installing free smoke alarms in high-risk areas. In the past year, Red Cross volunteers and partners across our 27-county footprint have installed 1,466 alarms and helped make 913 households safer.

There's No Place Like Home: Protect Yours This Fire Prevention Week

There’s no place like home…

There’s no place like home and the sense of security that you feel surrounded by loved ones. Now imagine that all taken away from you in a matter of minutes. 

Firefighters face fierce flames on a daily basis, whether they are paid or volunteer, their duty is the same to protect the public. Every 8 minutes, the American Red Cross responds to a disaster-related incident – the majority of which are home fires. I had the pleasure of speaking with AmeriCorps member Kayla McCall, who serves the American Red Cross of Western New York in the way of fire safety, on this topic.

It’s especially important this Fire Prevention Week as the Red Cross seeks to prepare families against the threat of home fires, which claim seven lives each day in the United States. These disasters are most common now, in the cooler months, when we tend to spend more time inside.

McCall was extremely knowledgeable and shared with me that fire safety is more than just fires and flames. As a person who experienced a home fire herself some years ago, she is now tasked within the ARC to educate families on the topic of residential safety and preparedness, and she has trained well over 30 families! On average, only 26% of families have actually practiced a home fire escape plan with their immediate family.  Regardless, children tend to fall back on their training and “hide from the bad guy” in an attempt to remain safe.  Sadly, if they hide during a fire, they are more likely to perish in the home not due to the fire but instead because of the thick and toxic smoke associated with fires. Statistics say that if there is a fire safety plan in place it reduces panic during an emergency and improves the outcome.

Kayla also had some noteworthy tips to share with our readers: when installing carbon monoxide detectors, place them lower to the ground as the toxic air is heavy and it remains low.  Smoke detectors should be installed up higher since smoke rises quickly.  But the one that I think will hit close to home for most is to avoid daisy chaining! This is the connecting of two or more power strips into each other.  Daisy chaining accounts for a number of OSHA violations, but more importantly they contribute to a large number of electrical fires that could have easily been avoided.

You can help to keep your family safe by testing your smoke alarms, as well as practicing your two-minute escape drill. Teach children what a smoke alarm sounds like and talk about fire safety and what to do in an emergency.

·         Place smoke alarms on each level of your home, including inside and outside bedrooms and sleeping areas. Test alarms monthly and change the batteries at least once a year, if your model requires it.

·         Also check the manufacturer’s date of your smoke alarms. If they’re 10 years or older, they likely need to be replaced because components such as batteries can become less reliable. Follow your alarm’s manufacturer instructions.

·      In your escape plan, include at least two ways to exit every room in your home.

·       Select a meeting spot at a safe distance away from your home, such as your neighbor’s home or landmark like a specific tree in your front yard, where everyone knows to meet.

·        Visit redcross.org/fire for more information, including an escape plan to practice with your family.

Some additional fire safety takeaways that could help keep you and your loved ones stay safe also include keeping a fire extinguisher in your home and changing the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors when you change your clocks with daylight savings time, every six months. For those who may be deaf or hard of hearing, install strobe light and bed-shaker alarms to help alert you or a loved one to a fire. And when practicing your escape plan, include any devices or people that help you to get out safely.

And in cases where you cannot afford to purchase a smoke alarm or are physically unable to install one, the American Red Cross of Western New York is there to help.

Home fires are our nation’s most common disaster. This Fire Prevention Week, help keep your family safe and join Kayla and the Red Cross in its mission to #EndHomeFires.

Story by Holly Gassler, American Red Cross of Western New York communications volunteer

Emergency blood and platelet shortage: Red Cross supplies drop to lowest post-summer levels since 2015

This is serious. 

Currently, the American Red Cross is experiencing an emergency shortage of its national blood inventory, especially type O, and platelets. In fact, the supply is at the lowest level for this time of year since 2015.

 

In order to keep up with hospital demand and ensure that patient care isn’t disrupted, we need your help. Donors of all blood types, especially type O, and platelet donors are needed to make an appointment to donate in the days and weeks to come to help make a lifesaving difference to those patients in need.

 

Here are 3 easy ways YOU can help make a lifesaving difference today:

 

1.    Make an appointment to give blood or platelets. Download the Red Cross Blood Donor app, visit RedCrossBlood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

2.    Bring a friend! Ask a friend to join you and make a regular appointment to donate together.

3.    Spread the word! Let your family and friends know there is an emergency shortage and encourage them to donate, too.

 

As our way of saying ‘thanks’ to all those who come in to donate, you’ll receive a link by email to claim a free Zaxby’s Signature Sandwich reward or get a $5 e-gift card to a merchant of your choice. Terms and conditions apply; see rcblood.org/zax for more details.

 

There are lots of scary things to think about this upcoming Halloween, don’t let a blood shortage be one of them. Help the Red Cross meet the emergency need by rolling up a sleeve and donating blood & platelets today!