ABOUT US
Disaster Relief and Community Disaster Education - Whan a disaster threatens or strikes, the Red Cross is there. This year we responded to 51 local disasters including residential fires. We helped 163 affected invididuals and families with emergency food, shelter and supplies.

Health and Safety Services - From first aid, CPR and AED training to swimming and lifeguarding, American Red Cross programs help people lead safer and healthier lives. This year, 4020 individuals learned lifesaving skills through classes offered by the Chapter.

International Services - The international tracing program helps local families find relatives with whom they have lost contact because of natural disasters, war or internal conflict.

Armed Forces Emegency Services - We provide communicaiton between those in the Armed Forces and their families. We have a worldwide network that reaches service members wherever they are to communicate a birth, death, or illness. This year we provided emergency connections and/or financial aid to 88 military families.

Blood Services - Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood. Thanks to generous blood donors, the Red Cross collects and distributes nearly half the nation's blood supply. Over the last year, our volunteers helped collect about 4500 units of blood.

A Note About Volunteers - This year, over 900 local volunteers made the work of the chapter possible. They contributed over 3700 hours for a contribution estimated at $67,350.


HISTORY
One morning in 1861, Clara Barton watched from her window at the United States Patent Office as the first Civil War troops arrived in Washington. They were wounded, sick and hungry. Disturbed by what she saw, Barton made a commitment to help those affected by war or civil unrest. Within a year, Barton had organized central collection centers for medical supplies and began to travel with the Union Army, distributing supplies and helping army doctors where she could.

In 1869, Barton traveled to Switzerland where she was introduced to Henry Dunant's Red Cross. When she returned to the U.S., Barton formed the American Red Cross. By 1881, with an army of volunteers, Barton began disaster relief across the country, bearing the red symbol known throughout the world today as the Red Cross.

Over 120 years later, the American Red Cross is the largest humanitarian organization in the U.S. Everyday, across the country, over a million volunteers carry out the Red Cross mission to provide relief to victims of disaster and to help people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies.

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Our original chapter charter, dated March 19, 1917, identified us as the Wenatchee Chapter, but it almost immediately changed to the Chelan-Okanogan County Chapter when the Wenatchee and Leavenworth chapters were consolidated. In April of 1967, Okanogan County withdrew to form their own chapter. In December, 1967 we were reorganized to include a portion of Douglas County and received our current charter as the Apple Valley Chapter. In 2000, Grant County was annexed into the Chapter giving us a jurisdiction of over 8500 square miles.


FUTURE GOALS
The Apple Valley Chapter strategic plan sets the direction for the chapter for the future. The strategic planning effort was started in the fall of 2003 by the Executive Committee within the Board of Directos and is expected to undergo changes as time passes and as more people have input into the plan.

The strategic direction for all units of the American Red Cross is to . . .

1. Be America's partner and a leader in mobilizing communities to help people prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters and other life-threatening emergencies.
2. Inspire a new generation of volunteers and supporters to enrich our traditional base of support.
3. Strengthen our financial base, infrastructure and support systems to continuously improve our service delivery system.