Be Red Cross Ready

Our conversation today with Stacy McFarland, Executive Director for the Greater Shenandoah Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross was FULL of information. Stacy educated us on several different programs and services offered by her organization and explained her chapter's coverage area: Washington County, MD, the five counties in the Eastern Panhandle of WV, and all of the top of Virginia including Shenandoah, Page, Warren, and Clarke Counties plus the City of Winchester. We talked about being "Red Cross Ready" for any situation whether it impacts your home and family or your workplace and business. She gave details for their Ready Rating program and explained that any business with ten or more employees is required by OSHA to have an emergency preparedness plan in place. You can find templates and checklists for those here: https://www.readyrating.org/ Stacy also reminded us that checklists and apps are also available on their website to help you be prepared for a short or long-term emergency.  This week kicks off Fire Prevention Week (October 8-14, 2023) so Stacy also reminded us that they still have free smoke detectors for area residents. You can call 844-216-8286 and they will come to your home and install several smoke alarms to make sure that your home is properly sounded in case of a fire.  Stacy also gave an update on the critical need for blood donations. In August they were 35,000 donations short of simply maintaining their blood supply. She explained why blood donations are important, educated us on the treatment of Sickle Cell Disease, and encouraged everyone in our black and brown communities to consider a blood donation. We discussed how blood drives work and the number of volunteers needed to make them successful. In addition to "on location" blood drives, the Greater Shenandoah Valley chapter hosts a blood drive at their location (561 Fortress Drive, Winchester, VA) every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.  Before we wrapped our conversation, we talked a bit about the value of volunteers from helping with intake and cookie distribution at blood drives, to being boots on the ground in disaster situations. Stacy also encouraged community members to consider serving on her board. Ideally, she would like to have representatives from each of our localities. As a board member, you would basically be a Red Cross ambassador. Stacy explained that duties include speaking to groups (And their circle of influence) about the Red Cross, the importance of blood donations, and why is critical to have Red Cross in our community. If you're interested and would like to talk more with Stacy about it, send her an email. You can find a WEALTH of information on their website: https://www.redcross.org/