Join us at the North Florida Fair this year and don’t forget to bring a card(s) for our Holiday Mail For Heroes collection! We’ll have a collection box and some blank cards for those that wish to send a message to our military Heroes. If you don’t have a card, you can still stop by our booth and see us in Building 4. We’ll have plenty of brochures to help your family year-around to keep them safe from natural hazards and a schedule of our community classes!

We’ll be at the Fairgrounds from  Thursday Nov 5th through Sunday Nov 15th. Look forward to seeing you all there!

Today is International Volunteer Managers Appreciation Day! We wanted to give a shout out to all of our volunteer coordinators and a special applause to those that are our volunteer-volunteer coordinators!

THANK YOU!

A little late in the season, the nineth named storm to form is Tropical Storm Ida at 4pm today. Current forecasts shows that Tropical Storm Ida was located about 75 miles east of Bluefields, Nicaragua and moving towards the west-northwest at 6 mph. A turn to the northwest and a decrease in forward speed is expected over the next couple of days. On the forecast track Ida should make landfall along the east coast of Nicaragua overnight.The maximum sustained winds are 60 mph and the minimum pressure is 996 mb. Some further intensification is possible before landfall.This is a great reminder to all that even in November, we need to still be prepared for possible storms!

Send a touch of home to the real heroes of America and their families! Holiday Mail for Heroes is back again!

For the third year in a row, the American Red Cross and Pitney Bowes are working together to collect, sort and distribute holiday cards to service members, veterans and their families.

The Capital Area Chapter of the Red Cross and Pitney Bowes will begin accepting cards on November 2, 2009. So get your pens and postage stamps ready and watch for the address in the coming weeks on RedCross.org.

All cards must be postmarked no later than Monday, December 7, 2009. Cards postmarked after December 7 will be returned to the sender. This deadline ensures enough time to sort and distribute cards before the holidays.

Every card received will be screened for hazardous materials by Pitney Bowes and then reviewed by Red Cross volunteers working around the country.

If you would like to begin working on your cards now, here are some quick guidelines to ensure your cards makes to a hero as quickly as possible:

Do…

• Ensure that all cards are signed.
• Make cards more meaningful to a wide variety of recipients by using “Dear Service Member, Family or Veteran” rather than any more specific language. You are encouraged to send holiday-neutral cards rather than religious-themed cards. Note: Cards addressed to specific individuals cannot be delivered through this program.
• Limit the number of cards to 15 from any one person or 50 from any one school class, business or group. If you are mailing a large quantity, please bundle the cards and place them in large mailing envelopes. Each card does not need its own envelope, as envelopes will be removed from all cards before distribution.

Do not…

• Send letters. Only cards are being accepted.
• Include email or home addresses on the cards, as the program is not meant to foster pen pal relationships.
• Include cards with excessive amounts of glitter. Because cards may be received by wounded service members and veterans in hospitals, large quantities of glitter could aggravate existing health problems.
• Include inserts of any kind, including photos, as these items will be removed during the reviewing process.

Its back and we are looking for your help this year to collect cards for our HEROES–those currently serving or have served in the US Military. Did you know that serving members of the military and their families was the first mission of the American Red Cross more than 125 years ago? More importantly, it remains a core part of the Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces mission today.

The United States currently has 1.4 million active duty members, reservists and guards serving within our borders and abroad. Additionally more than 24 million veterans have faithfully served our country in the past. The American Red Cross serves and supports these members of the military, veterans, and their families by providing emergency communications, comfort and assistance everyday. Beginning November 2, the Red Cross is working to increase awareness of Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces while also providing those that have sacrificed so much with some holiday cheer.

For the third year in a row, the American Red Cross is partnering with Pitney Bowes, a mailstream technology company, to collect and distribute holiday cards for American service members, veterans and their families in the United States and around the world. Joining the campaign this year as spokesperson is contemporary music artist and fellow celebrity cabinet member Amy Grant.

We’ll be collecting cards starting November 3rd until December 7th. We will have a drop off location both at our Chapter House and at our Booth at the North Florida Fair! Please contact the Katie or Topi at the Chapter for more information about this program!

This Halloween, lots of things will go bump in the night. But follow our tricks to make your night one that is safe but satisfyingly scary!

Below is a short clip featuring Health and Safety expert, Connie Harvey, who provides some tips to prepare your family for a safe Halloween night.

Pockets. Lots of pockets.

That’s according to Andy, the ex-boyfriend who lives in the pit on NBC’s Parks and Recreation.

And, once again, the Red Cross makes an appearance on primetime during the iParticipate campaign.

Here’s the quote:

“The key to volunteering? A lot of pockets…for putting all the food in. The Red Cross has amazing cookies. I go there all the time!”

You can see it for yourself on Hulu — 2:45 into the episode.

P.S. If you want to volunteer (or just want cookies), I’d suggest going here!

[Original post by Lise Harwin]

“Trick” to Safety this Halloween Everyone Should Follow the “Lucky 13” 

Ghouls and goblins will take over the night. But even scary creatures need to be safe and celebrate Halloween right. Halloween’s greatest hazards aren’t vampires and villains, but falls, costume mishaps and automobile collisions. The Capital Area Chapter wants your family to have a safe Halloween so we’re providing these tips, the lucky 13:

1. Map out the route that you plan to roam, so adults are assured you will find your way home!

2. From the bravest of superheroes to the noblest of knights, everyone should remember to bring their flashlights!

3. If you visit a house where a stranger resides, accept treats at the door and, please, don’t go inside.

4. When you get ready to put on your disguise, use face paint instead of masks, which will cover your eyes.

5. Always remember, before you embark, to wear light-colored clothing to be seen in the dark! (And remember to use reflective tape, even on bikes, skateboards and brooms!)

6. Whether you walk, slither or sneak, do it on the sidewalks and not in the street.

7. As you roam through the neighborhood collecting your treats, please look both ways before crossing the street! (And cross from the corner!)

8. Wigs, capes and costumes are flammable attire, so avoid open flames to prevent a fire!

9. Use a glow stick instead of a candle so your jack-o-lantern isn’t a safety gamble!

10. You may fly on a broom or a space ship from Mars, but please be on the lookout for drivers in cars! (And don’t hide between parked vehicles).

11. Monsters and zombies should stay off the lawn, and only visit homes with their porch lights turned on!

12. You may be dressed as a werewolf, a cat or a frog, but be cautious around strange animals, especially dogs.

13. Have a grown-up inspect your candy when you’re done trick-or-treating to remove open packages and choking hazards before eating.

May your family stay safe this Halloween!!

We all know that doing good can feel good too.  But does anyone REALLY think about what they can get by giving back?

Allow Garfield to show us.

Want to find opportunities to give back to your local American Red Cross? Visit our website for volunteer opportunities!

The Red Cross and Nationwide Insurance have been selected as one of five finalists for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Business Civic Leadership Center (BCLC) 2009 Partnership Award. This is a “Peoples’ Choice” award with the winner selected by a public online vote from September 15 through November 6. Nationwide Insurance has partnered with the Red Cross to support Disaster Services and Biomedical Services for more than 25 years. Show your support and help us win by voting now and encouraging friends and family to join you!