Humanity. Impartiality. Neutrality. Independence. Voluntary Service. Unity. Universality. Seven fundamental principles that define the world’s largest humanitarian relief organization.
Its commitment to prevent and alleviate human suffering worldwide has flourished over the past 150 years, providing impartial relief internationally by trained, competent volunteers.
This is the resumé of the International Committee of the Red Cross. With the help of the 187 national branches of the Red Cross, the Canadian Red Cross has provided an especially strong international presence for over a century.
Due to its reach and global influence, the Canadian Red Cross is able to assist in a variety of humanitarian projects. By joining the organization, you are putting aside personal opinions and individual limitations, and instead are embracing an ideal to help those in need.
For those of you who attend Trent, or who live in the community, the university has a Red Cross group that is looking for volunteers to help with events happening in the year ahead, and is also seeking individuals to take on executive positions within the group.
The group is meeting this week on October 7 to appoint specific roles, and we encourage anyone who would like to officially join to contact us.
For those of you who are constrained by busy schedules, Trent’s Red Cross group is also looking for casual volunteers to help out with events. So far, the group has identified several projects it wishes to undertake, many being joint efforts with other groups at the university.
Trent’s Red Cross plans to work alongside UNICEF Trent in organizing a walk-a-thon this fall, and, with the newly formed Trent Visual Arts Network group, they’re planning to co-host a gallery event with humanitarian themes addressed in the art pieces.
At this stage, the group is open to suggestions from our members. Your involvement could significantly affect the direction we take in the coming year.
In addition to the university group, you can also become involved with the local Peterborough and Haliburton branch of the Red Cross, located at 565 Water Street. Available programs include Disaster Management, a division which assists thousands of people in Ontario every year suffering from natural or manmade disasters.
Recently, members from the branch travelled to Alberta to help flood victims by providing immediate basic needs, such as shelter, food, water, clothing, first aid, and emotional support.
Other potential volunteer positions within the organization include RespectED, a bullying and abuse prevention program which has been running for nearly 30 years, and has educated over six million Canadians.
The objective of the program is to train volunteers in one of four specialized RespectED streams, and have them perform presentations within schools, businesses, government offices, and faith groups.
However you choose to support the Red Cross, your contribution will be valued and will further enhance the influence and recognition of the organization within the community.