Aliona Culiomina 10.28.

18

English 2010

REPORT-REVISION

American Red Cross

a little bit of history

It is important to know how the Red Cross

began. It was in June 1859 when Henry

Dunant went to Solferino, north of Italy.

He was a spectator of a small but bloody

war. French and Italians had a battle

against Austrians. There were more or less

40,000 victims. He was completely

horrified with the scene. He interrupted his

trip to help the hurt and organized

volunteers to save lives. When Henry

Dunant went back to his home town

Switzerland in 1862, he decided to talk and

write about his horrible experience. He

didn't want something similar to happen

again. In February 1863, he made a

commission with 5 people to help. 


In August 1964 it became the International purpose of the organization
Red Cross. Some years later, Clara Barton
The American Red Cross exists to provide
established a Red Cross society in America.
compassionate care to those in need. Their
She organized an association in Washington,
network of generous donors, volunteers and
D.C. on May 1881. The creation of this union
employees share a mission of preventing and
was made to help people in different difficult
relieving suffering, here at home and around
situations. Barton's group also began helping
the world, through five key service areas:
people from disasters. She was the president
disaster relief, supporting America’s military
until 1904.
families, health and safety services, lifesaving

blood, international services. The Red Cross

is always present at different situations, as a

medium of communication and humanitarian

services. The symbol of the Red Cross is a

worldwide known(Medical Center, 2012).

“We roll up our sleeves and donate time,

Clarissa "Clara" Harlowe Barton
(12.25.1821–04.12.1912) was a pioneering money and blood. We do this every day
nurse who founded the American Red Cross.
The Red Cross has always been handled by because the Red Cross is needed - every

volunteers and charities. It doesn't work as a day”, - says Gail

business but as a humanitarian organization. McGovern, the

It is impartial, neutral, independent, president of ARC.

voluntary, united and universal(Red Cross,

2016).

Gail J. McGovern (1952-) is a current president

and CEO of the American Red Cross as of June 23,
2008.
volunteering
start forgetting about sympathy and tolerance.
The foundation of the Red Cross work is
The Red Cross was created to encourage
voluntary help. Volunteers are people who are
people to help each other, to appreciate
ready to spend their time and efforts helping
individual and social values and be ready to
people who desperately need it. The Red
solve problems which refer to the whole
Cross does not only help victims of
humanity.
earthquake or suffering from famine children
Volunteers carry out over 90% of the
in Africa, it helps in emergency everybody
humanitarian work of the Red Cross.

who needs it because human life is the “Whether helping one displaced family or

greatest value and it should be in no way thousands, providing care and comfort to an

neglected. At the same time this organization ill or injured service member or veteran, or

learns people to work in a group, to be a real teaching others how to respond in

team and to act quickly in critical situations. emergencies, it’s through the efforts of

In our world in most cases we can observe ordinary people that we can do extraordinary

spiritual degradation: the mass media things” — the representative of ARC

propagates violence and sexual abuse, people says(Red Cross Youth, 2003).
donating blood
reasons people don't give
blood
Facts about blood needs:
• Every two seconds someone in the
U.S. needs blood.
• Approximately 36,000 units of red
blood cells are needed every day in
the U.S.
• Nearly 7,000 units of platelets and
10,000 units of plasma are needed
daily in the U.S.
• Nearly 21 million blood components
are transfused each year in the U.S.
• The average red blood cell transfusion
is approximately 3 pints.
• The blood type most often requested
by hospitals is type O.
• The blood used in an emergency is
already on the shelves before the
event occurs.
• It is estimated that sickle cell disease
affects 90,000 to 100,000 people in
the U.S. About 1,000 babies are born
with the disease each year. Sickle cell
patients can require frequent blood
transfusions throughout their lives.
• According to the American Cancer
Society, more than 1.69 million people
are expected to be diagnosed with
cancer in 2017. Many of them will
need blood, sometimes daily, during
their chemotherapy treatment.
• A single car accident victim can
require as many as 100 pints of blood.
1 I don't like or am scared of needles; I
am afraid to give blood.
Many people feel that way at first.
However, most donors will tell you
that you feel only a slight initial pinch,
and 7-10 minutes later, you are
finished and headed for the canteen. If
you take the time (and courage) to
make one donation, you'll wonder
why you ever hesitated.
2 I am too busy.
The entire process takes about an
hour, and the actual blood donation
time is only 7-10 minutes. If you stop
to think that an hour of your time
could mean a lifetime for a premature
baby, someone with cancer
undergoing chemotherapy, or someone
who's had an accident, you might
decide that you can make the time to
give the gift of life.
3 No-one ever asked me ... I didn't
realize my blood was needed.
Consider yourself asked! There is
simply no other way to supply the
blood needs of hospital patients but
for the generous donations of people
like you. Every two seconds someone
in America needs blood.
4 I already gave this year.
You can give every 56 days. Many
donors give 5 times a year!
5 I am afraid I'll get AIDS.
It is not possible to get AIDS by
donating blood to the American Red
Cross. A new sterile needle is used for
each donor and discarded afterwards.
6 My blood isn't the right type.
Every type of blood is needed daily to
meet patient needs. If you have a
common blood type, there are many
patients who need it, so it is in high
demand. If you have a less common
blood type, there are fewer donors
available to give it, so it is in short
supply.
(Blood Drive’s Safety, 2015)
7 I don't have any blood to spare.
The average adult body has 10-12
pints of blood. Doctors say that
healthy adults may give regularly
because the body quickly replaces the
blood you donate.
8 I don't want to feel weak afterward.
Donating blood should not adversely
affect a healthy adult because your
body has plenty of blood. You will
donate less than one pint, and your
body, which constantly makes new
blood, will replace the donated
volume within 24 hours. Most people
continue their usual activities after
donating.
9 They won't want my blood. (I am too
old. / I've had an illness.)
If you have doubts, check with your
physician. The qualified staff on duty
at a blood drive will also review your
medical history with you. There is no
upper age limit to donate blood with
the American Red Cross, and a great
many medical conditions do not
prevent you from donating blood, or
may have done so only temporarily in
the past.
10 I have a rare blood type, so I'll wait
until there is a special need.
Blood that is rare or special is almost
always in short supply. There is a
constant need for these blood types in
order to avoid having to recruit
specific blood types in a crisis.
blood recipient stories
One life spared while bringing another life
into the world
“This story happened 2 1/2 months earlier
than it was suppose to, I went into premature
labor with my son on March 18, 2015.... I had
4 other kids at home getting ready for school.
I called my husband who was on an audit for
the U.S Coast Guard. He sped home to rush
me to the hospital. We dropped half the kids
off at school and the other half at a friends
house... I got to the hospital and started to
bleed uncontrollably, I said goodbye to my
husband as they Literally RAN me to the
Operating room. I thought that was it, there
was no way that much blood can come out of
one person and survive...... thanks to donated
blood my WHOLE life was saved....
apparently my entire body is filled with new
blood, DONATED blood. My family didn't
loose a mother, sister, daughter, and wife. 3
1/2 hours later I was out of surgery and
thanking doctors left and right... What a scary
experience but it was one that has made me
realize the importance of donating blood.
Blood donation saved my kids from being
motherless and my husband from being a
widower, not to mention saved my life! I am
so thankful for blood donors, I owe my life to
them” — says Christina(Red Cross, 2016).
Thank You Donor
Laura shared her story as well and that’s what
she said: “I wish I could tell you, my donor,
how grateful I am for your selfless act. We
may be coworkers or schoolmates or just two
in the same community. You may have
wondered what became of your donation once
you left the donation site. For this lucky
recipient it gave me the strength to go back to
work and school after fusion surgery in my
cervical spine. Because you took 20 minutes
out of your day I am well again. Thank you
for sharing such a vital part of you!”
donor stories
Eternally grateful mother
‘’I was inspired to become a regular donor
after 2 of my children required blood
transfusions. Nothing touches your heart quite
like seeing your child literally brought back
to life by blood generously given by someone
else. I want to do everything I can to provide
that same peace to another mother.’’
by Ellen
Saving lives
“It's an amazing feeling to know that you are
helping to save lives!”
by Lori
I give because I can
“As a nurse, I’ve seen the importance of
blood donations and how they can very
literally save lives. As a universal donor (type
O-), I feel called to give what I can, when I
can. The Red Cross’ integration of technology
with the app makes it much easier to keep
track of when I’m eligible to donate, so I plan
to give even more regularly in the future!”
by Jennifer
Giving back for my daughter
“In 2015, my then 7 year old daughter was
diagnosed with cancer. She underwent a year
of chemotherapy treatment and also needed
15 blood transfusions and 3 platelet
transfusions. Today she is a healthy and
happy 9 year old and has been in remission
for over a year and a half. She comes with me
to the donation center and looks forward to
becoming a donor when she is old enough. I
give because of her.”
by David
My sacrifice is my Blessings
“I want to do something much greater
than myself for as many people as I
can. And as a Christian Husband,
Father and Grandfather. I want to
show my family that I put myself
second to others who need our
sacrifice because I care about people.
And as a Christian, I help people
while I am helping people.”
by Joseph
(Red Cross - “Red Cross Volunteers”,
2016)
make more people
volunteer
Ways to get more people volunteer and
donate for American Red Cross:
- teach the kids at very young age about
volunteering and how it is so important for
yourself and others. The best way to do it
would be send donors and volunteers to
elementary schools and tell those children
simple stories from their own lives!
- spread out more ads and let people know
that it is safe to donate blood, since so
many people are scared of that!
- involve all kinds of social media, because
people use a lot of social media now days
and this is the best to spread out the word
lately, but you have to make sure you are
attracting public with your posts and
pictures so they will be interesting in
reading the rest!
(Blood Drive’s Safety, 2015)
To sum up, the Red Cross is an international
organization with helps people in
emergencies. Every years thousands of
volunteers all over the world become
members of this organization. Volunteers do
not only help people in extreme situations,
they have long lasting trainings, such as
lifesaving training. Red Cross volunteers
make a great contribution to the whole
humankind because every day they save lives
of thousands of people(Red Cross, 2016)
I urge you to sign up, put on that red vest and
help!!! Let’s help each other out and make
this word a better place!
REFERENCES:
- University of Maryland Medical Center
umm.edu
- American Red Cross redcrossblood.org
- News from aCROSS the region
neoredcross.org
- Red Cross Youth redcrossyouth.org
- HuffPost huffingtonpost.com
- GiveSpot givespot.com
- Blood Drive’s Safety blooddrivesafety.com