Red Cross needs help from Pee Dee residents

The Pee Dee Chapter of the American Red Cross always has been there when we need it. Now, it’s our turn to be there for the Red Cross, which provides disaster relief and trains volunteers to handle emergencies in our community.

The Red Cross is holding a fundraising concert at the Florence Little Theatre tonight, hoping to add desperately needed funds to its coffers. Executive director Linda Boone-Smith said she hopes to clear $10,000 from the event.

The Woods Family and Friends will perform at the beautiful facility in downtown Florence. Tickets are $25.

Through fires, floods and other tragedies, the Red Cross has been the Pee Dee’s first responder in time of crisis. We cannot imagine life without its services. Its presence is vital and should not be taken for granted.

Pee Dee emergencies happen nearly every day for the Red Cross. The full-time staff of five and the staff of 60 volunteers respond to more than five single-family fires per week.
Men, women and children who have nowhere to go can count on the Red Cross to respond quickly. A debit card and clothes from the Red Cross help victims sustain themselves for three days after a crisis.

If the Pee Dee chapter were unable to maintain financial viability, the local office would close, and we would have to rely on relief from Columbia or Myrtle Beach. There’s no immediate danger of that happening, but it’s possible in the long term without successful fundraising.

The Pee Dee chapter touches more than 13,000 people annually with a $661,000 budget. Even without a mortgage on its property on Lucas Street in Florence, money is always tight because needs have been great.

“The majority of the time, we look at our bank account, and we’re scared to death,” Boone-Smith said in an interview with the Morning News. “We are locally self-sustaining, and we have to make budget. We have reached the point where there’s nothing else to cut.”

The Pee Dee chapter has benefitted from a partnership with United Way and the business community. A grant from the Wal-Mart Foundation recently was used to purchase a new trailer to haul emergencies supplies.

Here’s how you can help: Local Red Cross officials want more than 300 volunteers trained in case of emergency. The start of hurricane season underscores the seriousness of the problem. To address the problem, a class July 18 will train volunteers.

If you’ve ever wanted to be a humanitarian, now’s your chance.

The new trailer makes it easier for the Red Cross to transport cots and other supplies to shelters and disaster scenes. But the Pee Dee chapter needs another truck to pull it. If you have a truck, consider donating it to the Red Cross for a tax deduction.

“We need to pull trailers to shelters during emergencies, and we need to train people to drive trucks with trailers before we have an emergency,” Boone-Smith said. “We are in desperate need of folks to help at local emergencies, people who will be on call when we respond to fires.”

Anyone interested in training, making a donation or attending tonight should call the Red Cross at (843) 662-8121.

“It’s really important to keep this chapter healthy,” Boone-Smith said.

— Unsigned editorials represent the views of this newspaper. Editorial board members are Mark Laskowski (regional publisher), James Bennett (regional editor), Sam Bundy (sports editor), Kimberly Ginfrida (news editor), David Johnson (regional circulation director), Charles Tomlinson (Lake City News & Post editor) and Jackie Torok (metro editor).