American Red Cross to Hold Disaster Services Volunteer Training Classes
News Release: September 18, 2001
Contact: Janice Osborne, Manager-Media & Community Affairs
(610) 865-4400, ext. 262
Last Tuesday's (9/11) national tragedies have created an outpouring of support from thousands of Lehigh Valley residents wanting to help, many asking how to volunteer as a Red Cross disaster services volunteer.
"The answer is to begin by taking an introductory Red Cross Disaster Services training class and helping out on the local level," said Cordelia Miller, director of Emergency Services at the Lehigh Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross. "There is a great need here in our own backyard for Red Cross disaster services volunteers. On average, we respond to a fire or other disaster about once every three days. We are on the front lines 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. There are many, many opportunities available to volunteers who have gone through the required Red Cross disaster services training to aid people here in the Lehigh Valley, the state and the nation."
Residents interested in becoming local disaster services volunteers are invited to attend the "Introduction to Disaster Services" training class to be held Saturday, Sept. 22 at the Red Cross offices in Bethlehem.
Participants should allow two hours for training. Classes will be held at 9 a.m., noon and 3 p.m. at the Red Cross building, 2200 Avenue A in Bethlehem. Classes are free of charge.
The introduction training class is a mandatory first step in becoming a disaster services volunteer. The course provides an overview of Red Cross disaster services and what's expected of a disaster services volunteer.
Class instruction will be provided by Red Cross-trained disaster services volunteers and Red Cross employees. Pre-registration is preferred. To register, contact Nina Johnson at the Red Cross at (610) 865-4400, ext. 227 or at johnsonni@usa.redcross.org.
Additional training classes that build upon the introduction course will be scheduled with interested participants in the near future.
The Lehigh Valley Chapter Red Cross serves more than 660,000 residents in Lehigh, Northampton and Carbon counties. Last year the Red Cross provided health and safety education training and emergency relief services to more than 15,500 Greater Lehigh Valley residents.
For more information about the Lehigh Valley Chapter Red Cross, visit www.redcrosslv.org.
