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[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E389]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING THE AMERICAN RED CROSS NORTHWEST CHAPTER
______
HON. JARED HUFFMAN
of california
in the house of representatives
Tuesday, April 2, 2019
Mr. HUFFMAN. Madam Speaker, I rise today along with my colleague,
Representative Mike Thompson, to recognize the important role of the
American Red Cross Northwest Chapter which contributed to the 2019
presidential declaration of March as Red Cross Month.
Since its founding in 1881, the American Red Cross has become one of
the nation's largest humanitarian organizations, providing disaster
relief, emergency volunteer training, and support to military families
across the country. Each year the Red Cross responds to an average of
62,000 disasters across the country, operating emergency shelters,
serving meals and distributing relief materials to millions of disaster
victims. These efforts are largely completed by a resilient network of
volunteers that the organization has trained throughout the country,
who are estimated to respond to an emergency once every eight minutes.
This scale of service and rate of response is truly unmatched by other
humanitarian efforts nationwide.
In the last few years, my colleague and I have both witnessed the
importance of the American Red Cross Northwest Chapter in a time of
crisis. During the 2017 and 2018 wildfires, the Northwest Chapter
operated shelters, collected and distributed relief materials, and
provided emotional and mental health support of fire victims throughout
Northern California. In fact, the Northwest Chapter of the American Red
Cross assisted 330 families with 123 local disasters and assisted 98
military families with emergency assistance this past year alone. And
as recently as last month, the Red Cross was engaged in flood relief
efforts in parts of my district that were severely impacted by rain and
flooding caused by atmospheric rivers.
Since President Franklin D. Roosevelt first declared March as Red
Cross Month in 1943, we have come together at this time, each year, to
celebrate the accomplishments of the organization and raise awareness
of its value to the American people. And as natural disasters continue
to rise with each coming year, the humanitarian efforts of the American
Red Cross and its many volunteers become that much more important.
Madam Speaker, the American Red Cross performs a critical
humanitarian role throughout our country. The success of their efforts
is largely connected to the organization's ability to recruit and train
volunteers who can be called to action in their local communities. The
American Red Cross Northwest Chapter has provided invaluable assistance
to our congressional districts in time of highest need. Therefore,
please join my colleague and I in thanking them and in helping to raise
awareness for the American Red Cross by supporting the annual
declaration.
____________________