Mission: In 1863 a businessman by the name of Henry Dunant, witnessed the horrific scenes of the Battle of Solferino. He later wrote A Memory of Solferino describing his concerns; this led to the birth of the International Committee of the Red Cross. Meanwhile, Clara Barton, former schoolteacher traveled to Europe and learned about the International Committee of the Red Cross, and returned home, establishing the American Red Cross in 1881. The National Capital Chapter was established in 1905 by Mabel Boardman, Clara Barton's successor. Throughout the years, the chapter has provided many services. We primarily provide disaster assistance during fires, teach lifesaving skills such as CPR/First Aid and work with the youth in Community service projects. We also educate the public through our community disaster education program and HIV/AIDS courses. Behind the scenes, volunteers write press releases, work at our Thrift store and help with our computer network. Our volunteers are our greatest assets as they are representatives of Red Cross efforts of helping others.
This branch of the organization does not use their volunteers wisely. They do not call new people who want to volunteer back, and they do not maintain good record keeping. Some of the people answer their phone and they are rude. They do not do equal help in all area. Maybe only Fairfax is important or only English speakers. They do not want volunteers to run things, only people who get pay checks.
I volunteered for the ARC when I was between jobs. I worked in the community outreach program based in Fairfax. The people in the office were lovely! They were also very dedicated to their jobs and their cause. At the time I organized the storage closet of their volunteer supplies and helped them come up with an inventory system. While it was simple grunt work, it was necessary, and time consuming! It would have been difficult for a full time employee to find the time. My co-workers helped me out quite a bit, and even invited me to lunch of the occasions they left the office. The office itself was warm and friendly - and parking was easily accessible! I fully recommend.
