This holiday season, donate financially or give blood to help those facing future crises

2022 has been a year of crisis for families in the Northwest Region and around the world, from devastating wildfires here at home, to global emergencies like the conflict in Ukraine, to the first-ever national American Red Cross blood crisis.

“Whether a crisis is felt by an entire community or a single person, it turns lives upside down, especially for the most vulnerable,” said Alex Dieffenbach, CEO of the American Red Cross Northwest Region. “This holiday season, join us to provide help and hope for people in need during future emergencies by making a financial donation or by giving blood.” You can help your neighbors in need this Giving Tuesday and throughout the holiday season. Visit redcross.org/northwest to make a financial donation, an appointment to give blood, or to register as a volunteer.

Responding to disasters of all sizes.This year’s extreme disasters in the U.S. are clear examples of the increasing frequency and intensity of the climate crisis. So far in 2022, 15 billion-dollar disasters have upended lives across the country, more than twice the number of billion-dollar disasters that struck annually two decades ago. 

For these and tens of thousands of other disasters in the Northwest Region and across the country, Red Cross volunteers have worked 24/7 to provide shelter, food and care. Dozens of Northwest Region volunteers recently raised their hands to help in Red Cross recovery efforts after Hurricane Ian struck Florida. In February 2022, Lacie Clark, a member of the Northwest Region Services to the Armed Forces team, left her family and Spokane, WA home, to support troops in Kuwait during the conflict in Ukraine. 

Here in the Pacific Northwest, Red Cross volunteers have also provided relief and comfort after home fires, wildfires and widespread flooding, to help ensure no one faces a crisis of any size alone.

Helping families affected by global emergencies. Internationally, the conflict in Ukraine has forced millions of people to flee for their lives. With such vast needs, the American Red Cross has provided financial donations and international crisis responders to support the global Red Cross network’s response on the ground, which spans more than a dozen neighboring countries to deliver food, shelter, medical care, emotional support and other critical aid for displaced families. 

Meanwhile, the American Red Cross has also provided financial support to the ongoing hunger crisis in Africa. Overall, this year, as part of the world’s largest humanitarian network, the American Red Cross provided humanitarian aid in more than 108 countries.

Providing support for personal emergencies. In the Northwest Region, Red Cross workers have helped people through personal emergencies too, whether it was opening a safe shelter during southwestern Washington flooding and the Bolt Creek Fire, supporting our community’s military families on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Fairchild Air Force Base, and Naval Station Everett, or responding to individual home fires across the state. So far in 2022, Red Cross disaster teams have responded to more than 1,000 disasters in the Northwest Region, providing more than 3,600 people with emergency assistance, comfort, and care. 

Overcoming the first-ever Red Cross Blood Crisis. In January 2022, the Red Cross experienced its worst national blood shortage in over a decade due to ongoing collection challenges and varied hospital demand during the pandemic. Patients in need of lifesaving blood transfusions relied on an outpouring of support from hundreds of thousands of generous blood donors to overcome the crisis. 

Beyond national headlines, the need for blood is constant. One in 7 patients entering a hospital will need a blood transfusion. As seasonal illness and the threat of winter weather ramp up this holiday season, make a donation appointment and be a lifeline for car accident victims, parents with complicated childbirths, individuals battling cancer and people with sickle cell disease.  

Give thanks and give back. Now is the time to make and keep blood donation appointments. As a thank-you, all those that come to give Nov. 23-27 will get an exclusive Red Cross beanie, while supplies last. Thanks to our partners at Amazon, all donors who come to give blood Nov. 28-Dec. 15 will receive a $10 Gift card by email.*  

Upcoming Chelan County blood donation opportunities Nov. 21-Dec. 15:

Cashmere: December 6, 12:30-5:30 p.m., Cashmere United Methodist Church, 213 S. Division Street, Cashmere, 98815.

Wenatchee: December 7, 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., Kings Orchard Church of Christ, 1610 Orchard Avenue, Wenatchee, WA 98801.

*Terms apply. Visit rcblood.org/together.

About Our Regional Holiday Supporters: The Red Cross is grateful for corporate partners who contribute to our Holiday Campaign. Thanks to the generosity of these and other supporters, the Red Cross is able to bring help and hope to people in need.

About the American Red Cross: The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.