The American Red Cross prevents and alleviates human suffering in the face of emergencies by mobilizing the power of volunteers and the generosity of donors.
10/06/2017 Two American Red Cross volunteers Jerry Chavez and Ray Quintana headed across the country to help their fellow compatriots dealing with the overwhelming effects of Hurricane Harvey. Driving a Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) from Fresno, California to Black Springs, Florida took about a week to arrive. Right now, more than 250 of … Continue reading Across Country Helpers: Two volunteers on a mission
Close your eyes for a moment and imagine yourself at home. You’ve been told a hurricane is coming your way and to prepare for the unimaginable. The rain has started falling. It gets heavier and the wind is picking up. You drive to the store and stock up on water, batteries, and food. The TV … Continue reading 24 Hours of Terror
It moved fast, furiously and forced hundreds of people from their homes. The Detwiler Fire was like no other for the residents of Mariposa and surrounding areas. It swept through dry brush, charred trees and demolished dozens of homes, leaving numerous residents without a place to live and stole all normalcy from their lives. In … Continue reading Detwiler Fire: A tale of two mental health volunteers
Janet Kirkland has been in the Hunter’s Valley community for the past thirty years and can make anyone smile. If there is one thing you need to know about Janet, it is that she is tenacious and that she is going to stay positive throughout the Detwiler Fire. One thing that brought her comfort, was … Continue reading Comfort in the Face of Adversity
Last weekend 7-year-old Andrew George was celebrating his spiritual birthday by giving away lemonade at a lemonade stand with his family in his neighborhood by Dos Pueblos High School in Goleta, California. While he was giving away lemonade, people would leave him tip money as a thank you. While he and his family were giving … Continue reading Pouring Out Some Good
Rick and Ronda Rozanek had left their Lake Cachuma campsite for the day when they heard about the Whittier Fire evacuations. Stranded in a new place with just the clothes on their back, they found relief in the Red Cross emergency shelter at San Marcos High School in Santa Barbara, California. They were grateful for … Continue reading California Wildfires Update
As we continue to look back on 100 amazing years of service from the American Red Cross Central California Region the word “selfless” has made an appearance multiple times. The definition of “selfless” as explained by the Modern Language Association is described as, having little or no concern for oneself, especially with regard to fame, … Continue reading A Service to Stand By
Just before 4:00 p.m. on June 23, 2016, Jim Steel noticed a faint glow out the window of his Squirrel Valley home. He went into his backyard for a closer look, and that’s when Jim first saw the plume of smoke rising from the east side of Cook Peak Mountain. He knew in an instant … Continue reading One Year Later: An Erskine Fire Retrospective
Pizza, volunteering, and newly formed friendships. Sounds like a great day, right? That was the theme of the Home Fire Campaign that the American Red Cross of Ventura County held on January 14th, 2017. Volunteers met early in the morning and divided into teams with different functions such as installers, educators, recorders, and translators. They … Continue reading Pizza Man Dan
The drought may be over for most of California, but that doesn’t mean the threat of wildfires is gone. In fact, many fire experts agree that this summer the threat may be even worse. The weather has only started to heat up, but the Central California Region has already seen thousands of acres burned due … Continue reading Ready for Wildfires: 5 Steps to Prepare your Family and Home
Red Cross Central California Blog 