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ARC-NMI Chapter celebrates 40th anniversary
American Red Cross-NMI Chapter executive director John Hirsh shares a few words to the Rotary Club of Saipan yesterday. (Erwin Encinares)
The American Red Cross-NMI Chapter turned 40 yesterday as executive director John Hirsh announced yesterday during the Rotary Club of Saipan meeting.
According to Hirsh, the organization, which was formed in the CNMI 1978, was started after the NMI gained its commonwealth status in the mid-1970s after some members of the Guam chapter of the organization reached out.
“What a 40 years it has been,” said Hirsh, who has been reportedly involved with the organization for 30 years—20 of which as a “paid staff member.”
“Our mission is still alive and well here in the Commonwealth,” he said.
Hirsh noted that among many other programs, the organization provided emergency assistance for typhoons and storms, taught thousands of children to swim, and saved lives through cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, and first aid training or assisted NMI U.S. Military families connect with their service members.
“…Whether it’s doing bulk distribution, damage assessments, or even going out. We have a whole [lot of] volunteers who go out and provide emergency relief around the nation,” he said.
According to Hirsh, the NMI chapter currently has 15 “highly trained” volunteers that assisted in disasters such as 2012’s Hurricane Sandy, the Sept. 11 attacks, and the California wildfires, among others, to provide assistance if needed.
“We are deploying our volunteers there to help out in those particular countries,” he said.
Noting that there isn’t a particular criterion for helping those in need, Hirsh said in an interview that the organization seeks to assist everybody in the CNMI.
“…There are folks that are ineligible: they might come from a foreign country, they might come from different parts of Micronesia, or they might not be able to get federal assistance, but for Red Cross particularly, we service everyone in the community,” he said.
