American Red Cross helps military around globe Published May 30, 2014 By Joan Kelley-Williams Services to the Armed Forces director TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- As we end May, I reflect that May is special for so many reasons, Mother's Day, Armed Forces Day and Memorial Day among them. From our Red Cross office here at Travis and throughout our region, I am privileged to work with a dedicated team of volunteers and our Red Cross Services to the Armed Forces specialist, Jeffrey Flanagan, providing support to members of the military and their families. From its early days, the American Red Cross has provided full support to the members of the U.S. military, veterans and their families. Through our services to the Armed Forces program, the Red Cross supports our service members in the military by connecting them with their families during emergencies, providing them resilience training to deal with the challenges of deployment and linking their families with local community resources. But the service most commonly used connects a deployed service member to their family in times of emergency. The American Red Cross Emergency Communications Center is available to help seven days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to relay urgent messages containing accurate, factual, complete and verified descriptions of the emergency to service members stationed anywhere in the world, including on ships at sea, and at embassies and at remote locations. American Red Cross serves 2 million military personnel, including active duty, National Guard and Reserve, as well as our veterans. We provide 24/7 global emergency communication services and support military and veteran health care facilities across the country and overseas. We help families cope with deployments and support returning combat veterans as they reintegrate into the community. Our team of 350 employees and thousands of volunteers helps deliver services at 1,200 Red Cross offices in communities across the country and on 56 military installations around the world. In fiscal year 2013, Red Cross · Provided nearly 335,000 emergency communication services to 124,000 military members and their families. · Trained 5,000 family members in improving coping skills and resiliency. · Trained nearly 350 dental and medical assistants on military installations, including spouses of service members deployed overseas. · Distributed nearly 144,000 care, comfort and therapy items at military hospitals and medical facilities. · Served 21,000 individuals through rehabilitation and morale programs. · Reached 1.1 million individuals through "Get to Know Us Before You Need Us" briefings. Closer to home Locally, in communities served by the Bay Area, which includes Travis Air Force Base, Silicon Valley, Santa Cruz and Monterey chapters, Red Cross staff and volunteers have provided over 800 emergency communication messages to families that needed to notify their military member of an emergency since July 2013. The American Red Cross helped to connect the family and the service member either directly or through an authorized person within his or her command and, when necessary, helped bring the service member home. At Travis, in addition to emergency communications, Red Cross Services in 2013 included hosting the 2013 Summer Youth Volunteer Program (signups for the 2014 program began May 28), as well as our ongoing Adult Volunteer Program at DGMC and collaboration with DGMC's dental clinic to implement the Dental Assistant Volunteer Training Program. We also provided outreach, community education and engagement through many of our base partners. Travis Red Cross volunteers and the American Red Cross salute the Armed Forces of the United States of America and all members serving in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force and Coast Guard as well as all veterans and their families during National Military Appreciation Month this May. For emergency communications services 24/7 every day of the year, you can reach us at 877-272-7337. To volunteer or for information about our local services, contact us at 423-3648. We are located at DGMC on the first floor in Room 609-A.