A Look Into the Life of a WWII Resistance Fighter and Local Red Cross Volunteer

A few months back, we wrote about how our office received a surprise visitor in the person of Diet Eman, a local WWII concentration camp survivor and former member of the Dutch Resistance. Diet stopped by again yesterday for a Lifesavers Tour, and we thought that you might all enjoy hearing more of her story.
This [...]

Tulips are good for the soul

As part of our AmeriCorps term of service, we participate in a service project each month, usually working outside the American Red Cross with another organization.  For our October Service project, one of our members found a volunteer needs posting entitled “tulip planting.”  So we piled into a van and made our way to Holland, [...]

AmeriCorps Great Stories, part one

We AmeriCorps, as part of our reporting duties, are on the lookout for great stories to write down at the end of each month.  We have quite a few stories piled up by now, and I thought it was time to tell them – that’s what great stories are for, after all.  The first one comes from [...]

Help Us With Our “Preparing Our Community” Disaster Kit Drive!

Items as simple as toothpase, bottled water, and a first aid kit can be an enormous help to a family whose home is damaged or destroyed by disaster, such as a fire or flood. Help us help others as your local Red Cross is collecting items for disaster kits that will then be distributed at [...]

Calling all young artists!

Who are the Red Cross’s helping hands?
How do they reach out to you and your community?
What have you done to be a Red Cross helping hand?
How has Red Cross helped you prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies?
Create a piece of art that answers any of these questions, and you could win fame and glory!  [...]

Sign the Petition!

Nothing like a little civil action first thing in the morning!

In honor of the 60th anniversary of the Geneva Convention, the Red Cross is circulating an online petition via Facebook to support teaching international humanitarian law. With a goal of 100,000 signatures by August 12, the petition promotes the Exploring Humanitarian Law (EHL) [...]

Red Cross Rocks When It Comes to First Aid

Did you know that your local Red Cross is providing the first aid tent at all the shows at the Outdoor Concert Series at Frederick Meijer Gardens this summer?

Thanks to all our amazing ERV drivers, nurses, and highly trained volunteers who sacrifice their time to adminster first aid and endure listening to bands like Indigo [...]

A Great Video Showcasing the “Birthday Bash” Shelter

A great video shot on-the-scene by the Grand Rapids Press from the Birthday Bash shelter in Ionia this past weekend:

Shelter for Birthday Bashers CLOSING!

THE SHELTER IS CLOSING BY 1:30 PM ON SUNDAY, JUNE 21, DUE TO MOST SHELTER RESIDENTS HEADING HOME.

(Thanks to WOOD TV 8 for the photo.)
We had 130 people stay overnight at the shelter our amazing team of volunteers set up at Ionia Middle School. Most people have headed home by now (thanks to the sad [...]

B-93 Birthday Bashers Get Stranded; Red Cross to the Rescue!

Thanks to a hefty amount of rain, and hence, flooding, over approximately 1,000 concert goers at the B-93 Birthday Bash are being evacuated from the Ionia County Fairgrounds.

Your local Red Cross is setting up a shelter at the Ionia Middle School, located at 438 Union St. in Ionia. Any stranded Birthday Bashers may head [...]