Friday, June 20, 2008: Storms and heavy rainfall have caused serious flash flooding in already saturated areas of the central United States. In response, the American Red Cross has mobilized relief workers to six states in the devastated areas. Floods are among the most frequent and costly natural disasters in terms of human hardship and economic loss.
Relief efforts are already underway in Indiana, Nebraska, Iowa, and Wisconsin where the Red Cross is providing for the immediate needs of the tornado and flood victims, including food and shelter; with workers poised and ready to respond in Illinois and Michigan as the situation develops. West Virginia is also seeing substantial flooding and Red Cross workers are responding there, as well. Nearly 1100 Red Cross workers, including more than 900 volunteers, are deployed throughout the widespread area.
Arlingtonian Ken Briggs is one of those volunteers. On Tuesday, June 17th, Ken deployed to Cedar Rapids, Iowa to serve as an Individual Client Services Administrator. In this role, Ken oversees all Red Cross services provided to victims 
of disasters through a casework process. These activities and services may include direct financial assistance for replacement of essential items, counseling services, health related services and reunification or welfare information services.
Ken just returned to Arlington after deploying to Macon, GA in May to assist tornado relief operations there. Ken has been with the Arlington Chapter since May 2006. He currently serves as our chapter’s Disaster Assessment team lead, is a Health & Safety Instructor Trainer and volunteers regularly to teach Health & Safety Courses to our community. Ken also volunteers at Red Cross National Headquarters with the Services to the Armed Forces program, helping provide support to active-duty military personnel and their immediate relatives when emergencies arise.
Red Cross shelters are open throughout the affected states to give displaced families a place where they can sleep, get vital information about available assistance, have a hot meal, talk with a mental health worker or meet with a health services worker about any of their healthcare needs. Meanwhile, Red Cross disaster assessment workers are preparing to scour the areas, once they are safely accessible, to determine the extent of the widespread devastation. Thirty Emergency Response Vehicles are also outfitted to deliver food, water, comfort and hygiene supplies and will be mobilized within the communities where needs are apparent.
“It is with the help of the American public that we are able to respond to the disasters in the Midwest, as well as the disasters that occur every day in local communities across the country that you may not hear about,” said Joe Becker, senior vice president, Disaster Services for the American Red Cross.
On February 5, 2008, Club Red teamed up with Piola restaraunt in Arlington, VA to raise awareness and funds for The Malaria Prevention Project. Club Red is a group of young professionals in their 20's and 30's who come together in support of the Arlington Red Cross. They did a fantastic job with this first event, raising $1,300, enough to send 130 bed nets to families in Africa.
Malaria is a deadly disease that affects more than 300 million people per year—that is roughly the entire population of the United States impacted each year. While it has been effectively eliminated from the United States, malaria is a killer in Africa and many other regions. Every thirty seconds, a child dies of malaria in Africa. But we know that by working together and by drawing on the generosity of people across the United States, we stop the spread of this disease. This is part of the commitment of the Red Cross to assist people in need–whether it is at home or around the world. The American Red Cross efforts include raising awareness of the burden of malaria, providing insecticide-treated bed nets to families, educating people on the proper use of nets, and researching methods to increase usage of bed nets. In particular, the American Red Cross and its partners have supported the distribution of nearly 20 million insecticide-treated bed nets to children and pregnant women in Africa and elsewhere (since 2001). When used properly, bed nets are one of the most effective ways of preventing the spread of malaria. For less than $10, you can help to make sure that a child or pregnant mother sleeps under an insecticide-treated bed net. That’s $10—around the cost of a movie—to protect a family against this deadly disease.
For more information, visit www.redcross.org/malaria
