Changes at American Red Cross Nationally and in particular at Hoosier Heartland Chapter of Muncie

Well with the National and Regional economic and financial hardships settling in at many different levels across the nation, in all sorts of communities that had not yet had the current recession in all that bad a way.  You know they lived on the fringe of the Housing or Automotive and Banking industries and didn’t have a lot of investments in the stock market or interests overseas? ? ?I don’t know about you, but here in Muncie Indiana at least a lot of the above have had a very direct impact on every (yes, every) segment mentioned and then some.

As volunteer lead at our local American Red Cross, I am acutely aware many changes the National American Red Cross has been undergoing and how they directly and even indirectly affect, our local Chapter in the many ways any National Franchise would.  One of the most evident ways is all the Volunteer Chapter Boards have gone from being “Governing” to Volunteer “Advisory” and the changes accompanying this are not fully understood at this time, but for the most part any and all are simply “Advisors with Review Authority” and it remains how the new strategy of going from Service Areas to Regional Areas will play out.

One thing for sure; we are no longer the “sole” player in many of the areas we were prior to Hurricanes’ Katrina, Rita, and Wilma a few years back.  The congressional roles have been changed to the degree we are not the “Sole” Sheltering and Feeding agency.  On so many fronts during National Disaster Responses, American Red Cross has become another one of the players on the team responding to the Humanitarian needs caused by any such disaster.

Locally, the Hoosier Heartland Chapter has shed some management that could no longer be afforded due to severely reduced donations and historical community philanthropic agencies support.  Some of the foundations the Chapter has been able to count on over the past twenty plus years have all lost significant funds from investments, and the agencies tasked with allocating what funds are left are now using a new program to measure effectiveness and use of available donated dollars and their being leveraged by recipients, to do the most good for the population being served.

Preparedness and Effective Service Delivery are still the Key focal points, with the Local Chapter and also is with the new Business end of the Chapter in the form of the American Red Cross of Greater Indianapolis (ARCGI).

This is important as Matches go, because they will be “managing” the local Chapter from Indianapolis for the foreseeable future.  Due to the loss of some key paid staff members, it is going to make having qualified and committed experienced Volunteers that much more important.

At present, the local Chapter still has very well trained and experienced volunteers and volunteer leaders who have thus far been receptive to the new realities the reduced funding have made necessary.  Now it remains to see how the ARCGI and local Volunteer Leaders and what is left of the paid staff will work to meet the historical and continuing needs to service the jurisdictional population and the programs that can till be funded to meet requirements from whatever available funds can be raised.  As the good stewards of your donated dollars, every Chapter has been asked over the years to reduce operating cost, while maximizing whatever leverage can be done to help Trained and Equipped Volunteers be there in each community to do the job of exceptional Effective Service Delivery; according to National and even International Standards.

Our hope at the Chapter level is that you the public we serve and stay pre-prepared for will continue to join us at whatever level in terms of financial and volunteer training support.  You could be that person who helps save a life and relieve the suffering of a disaster caused loss in your community.

If you live within the East Central Indiana Area?  Please consider becoming a American Red Cross trained disaster or even Health & Safety community volunteer; and if you can’t do that, perhaps you would consider a financial donation to help fund, equip, and make it possible for others in the community to become effective local American Red Cross Volunteers that will have what they need, when the need arises.

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