[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 5303]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



         TRIBUTE TO AMERICAN RED CROSS, MID-RIO GRANDE CHAPTER

  Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise to pay tribute to an 
organization that celebrates a special anniversary in New Mexico this 
month. The Red Cross, Mid-Rio Grande Chapter this April celebrates its 
85th anniversary of being a humanitarian presence in my home state.
  Last May, the devastating Cerro Grande wildfire destroyed hundreds of 
homes in Los Alamos and caused the evacuation of more than 25,000 
people in the region. New Mexico residents, business leaders and 
numerous agencies generously responded to support a relief effort. But 
one agency stood out as a leader in the swift response to meet 
emergency needs of the thousands of families affected: the American Red 
Cross.
  The Albuquerque-based Mid-Rio Grande Chapter serves as the Red Cross' 
lead unit for disaster services in New Mexico. As such, the Mid-Rio 
Grande Chapter, working with sister chapters in Los Alamos and Santa 
Fe, coordinated more than 2,000 volunteers to help ensure that shelters 
were opened, meals were served, and mental health counselors, nurses, 
caseworkers and others were available to work with families faced with 
rebuilding their homes and their lives.
  This relief effort, while one of the largest in the state's history, 
is only one example of the services this Red Cross Chapter provides to 
disaster victims.
  Over the decades, the agency's services have evolved to continue to 
meet the needs of the communities it serves. The Red Cross was founded 
in 1881 by Clara Barton. During WWI and WWII, the Red Cross provided 
extensive services to the members of the U.S. military, supplying more 
than 80 percent of the bandages used on the battlefields and in the 
military hospitals. Red Cross nurses and volunteers served in those 
overseas hospitals, as well as the VA hospitals back home.
  Following the wars, new services were formed to meet the needs of 
veterans. The Red Cross began to expand into home and workplace first 
aid programs. Swimming lessons and lifeguard training, once unheard of, 
became a part of hundreds of thousands of children's lives and 
continues today. CPR and first aid are still taught every week at the 
Mid-Rio Grande Chapter and around the state and country. In Albuquerque 
and central New Mexico alone, more than 13,000 people are trained every 
year.
  In New Mexico, the Red Cross also runs a bone and tissue 
transplantation program. They work closely with United Blood Services 
to help ensure an adequate blood supply.
  In addition to the Albuquerque chapter, the Red Cross also operates 
chapters in Clovis, Farmington, Hobbs, Las Cruces, Los Alamos, Roswell 
and Santa Fe.
  Throughout program's lifetime, one service has remained constant: 
disaster relief. Response to fires, floods, windstorms, winter storms, 
hazardous material spills, transportation accidents, and search and 
rescue operations has all been part of the everyday work of the 
American Red Cross, Mid-Rio Grande Chapter. Just last year, they 
responded to 229 disasters and assisted 285 families, not including the 
aid given to victims of the Cerro Grande Fire. The Chapter also trains 
thousands a year in disaster education in an effort to help people 
prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies.
  This year, as the Chapter celebrates its 85th anniversary of service, 
we honor years of commitment and the contributions volunteers have made 
to our communities by improving and saving lives. These services are 
made possible only through the generous donations of the people of New 
Mexico and the nation.
  I commend the efforts of the Mid-Rio Grande Chapter of the American 
Red Cross. I encourage everyone to learn more about the Red Cross and 
its support services. It is a great organization that relies on public 
support to ensure that it remains strong and ready to respond to 
emergency and public safety needs in Albuquerque, the state, the 
nation, and the world. It is hard to imagine what this country might 
have been like without the great contributions of one of the world's 
oldest and largest humanitarian organizations--the American Red 
Cross.

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