Today, the Red Cross Chapter serving the Washington DC region is holding its annual fundraiser, “In the Bag”. The women’s committee of the chapter will auction designer, vintage and celebrity handbags to help fund the vital services the Red Cross provides to the community, including disaster relief, first aid training and assistance to military families. This event raised $20,000 last year and this year’s goal is to reach $40,000. Just to appreciate how important funding support is, consider that the National Capital Region of the American Red Cross provides 250,000 meals monthly and 750 volunteers to local hospitals. In addition, the Red Cross chapters also support international disaster relief efforts. Last year, the Capital Region Chapter provided emergency services to over 40,000 people.
I donated a handbag that was custom made for me at a shop in the Peninsula Hotel in Hong Kong. I have never used the bag; it is in mint condition and I hope someone else will enjoy it. You can see it on the auction site which features snapshots of the bags. If you don’t want to bid on a bag, you can volunteer or contribute funds. This graphic image, by the way, relates to a Red Cross chapter in Louisiana “Power of the Purse”, so check out what your local Red Cross chapter is doing this month as you may be able to get a great deal on a top-notch handbag.
It is particularly important that we support the Red Cross this year. In this tough economy, with persistently high unemployment, it is no surprise that charitable contributions have declined relative to years past. At the same time, the frequency and severity of natural disasters has increased dramatically and we certainly cannot count on government support, either at the community, state or federal levels.
So let’s all do what we can to support the Red Cross which delivers services critical to every community.