Red Cross chapter hopes to meet more need despite fewer dollars

An older, unidentified New Bern man walked out of his burning house at Christmastime with nothing but his dog.

He was one of the last people helped in 2008 by the Coastal Carolina Chapter of the American Red Cross, said Carol Hardy, director. The man was one of 132 victims of home fires who were aided by the chapter last year.

Hardy said the man had no wallet, no identification, nothing but the dog and the clothes on his back, and was mostly helped by neighbors.

As the Red Cross chapter enters New Year 2009 with more need and fewer dollars, it is planning its annual meeting this month to thank those who have helped it and consider how to make the most of time and money.

Hardy said the 5 p.m. Jan. 27 meeting at St. Andrew Lutheran Church at 1605 Neuse Boulevard is for all volunteers, Gray Ladies and Lads, financial donors, and blood donors.

"Thanks to United Way and the Bate Foundation, we are holding our own financially," she said.

The chapter hopes to go further with less in 2009, and is already on track this year to enhance successful 2008 Red Cross Ready Days and outreach efforts.

Hardy said outreach done for new Burmese refugees to this area was a highlight for 2008. The Red Cross staff and volunteers crossed language and custom barriers to teach basic first aid training to 13 refugees.

"It was a big first step," she said, and it was done with the help of Interfaith Refugee Ministries and American Red Cross volunteers. "It was significant that they got them to come."

Red Cross staff and volunteers also taught CPR and first aid classes to other nonprofit groups including the Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity and the staff of the Interfaith Refugee Ministries.

But the local chapter is "truly in need of volunteers at the instructor level and in disaster assistance, particularly those who help families when their homes are burned," Hardy said.

In 2008, the Coastal Carolina Chapter helped in 48 home fires, spending about $21,000 to help victims immediately cope. The Red Cross gave them temporary housing and a debit card for survival needs.

Hardy said that "$130 doesn't sound like much but when you get it in a debit card and can go buy a change of clothes and groceries, it really helps. It is almost impossible to imagine, whatever you have, that in a couple of hours, it could be all gone."

Local chapter work touched the lives of between 3,000 and 3,500 people in four counties 2008, Hardy said, excluding the blood collection drives.

Contributions of money and time can keep the work going, Hardy said. "We, as a community, need to pull together, look at our collective needs, and really make an effort to focus and maximize where our dollars and efforts are going."

She said a new Bate Foundation grant for disaster relief planning and mock drills will enhance work the chapter already sponsors including outfitting volunteers for training and aiding with communitywide free events.

Because keeping volunteers ready for disaster even when it does not strike is so important, Hardy said, "we will continue to try to get volunteers to engage in more than a single activity. They are the public face of the Red Cross."

Those wishing to contribute money instead of time can designate that it be used in this area, she said. Contributions may be sent to Coastal Carolina Chapter of the American Red Cross at P.O. Box 10, New Bern, N.C. 28563, designating "local use" on the check memo line.