The Hopkins Red Cross Corps provides training and volunteer opportunities for Corps members to serve those individuals who are struck by disaster, from people in single family house fires to people affected by large national disasters such as floods and hurricanes.
Active involvement with the Disaster Action Team (DAT) of the Central Maryland Chapter allows our volunteers to donate time and guidance to people in despair, people whose homes are destroyed and possessions are lost forever due to disasters.
Red Cross disaster relief focuses on meeting people's immediate emergency disaster-caused needs. When a disaster threatens or strikes, the Red Cross provides shelter, food, and health and mental health services to address basic human needs. In addition to these services, the core of Red Cross disaster relief is the assistance given to individuals and families affected by disaster to enable them to resume their normal daily activities independently. The Red Cross also feeds emergency workers, handles inquiries from concerned family members outside the disaster area, provides blood and blood products to disaster victims, and helps those affected by disaster to access other available resources.
Annually, the Central Maryland Chapter responds to over 700 disasters; and, nationally the American Red Cross is the trusted organization that sends its trained volunteers to provide assistance 24 hours a day, 365 days per year. The ARC deployed hundreds of volunteers to New York City in response to the September 11 attacks, and qualified individuals are still needed to volunteer. Opportunities will exist for fully trained Johns Hopkins DAT members to register with the ARC and respond to national disasters during Intersession and Summer breaks.
This is truly a unique opportunity to make a difference in someone's life.