Press Release
April 12, 2007

RED CROSS TURNS 60

With a long list of achievements in humanitarian service, the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) has become a living testimony of the Filipinos courage and innate desire to help those in need through various services that the organization has been carrying out in its 60 years of existence.

As PNRC chairman Richard J. Gordon put it, The Red Cross has been consistently at the forefront of every major disaster and other times of great need, where we served as a reliable partner to the government in providing help to the most vulnerable Filipinos.

Last year, the PNRC served in various ways over a million victims of disasters, particularly families that have been displaced by landslides in Southern Leyte, and super-typhoons Reming and Seniang in the Bicol region. Aside from relief assistance, the PNRC has also been involved in housing projects for families whose homes were severely destroyed, to help them start their lives anew.

A better, more modern PNRC

The PNRC will mark its 60th Year Anniversary on April 15. A number of activities are already in the works to turn the occasion into a year-long celebration aimed not only at fostering public awareness of what the Red Cross stands for and what it does, but also at raising more funds to support the various humanitarian programs of its 94 local Chapters nationwide.

In the past 60 years we have maintained a reputation for world-class services, so the challenge now is to make PNRC even more Focused, Fast, Friendly, Flexible and Forward-looking, said Gordon, referring to theme of the Anniversary which serves to complement the older, disaster management slogan of 4P: Prepare, Plan, Predict and Practice. One of the ways to make this dream a reality is to engage in modernization projects which we are doing now.

To usher the PNRC into the new millennium, and thus improve its services tenfold, the last five years saw the PNRC taking on capacity building projects including the acquisition of modern equipment like rescue trucks, ambulances, blood-testing machines and blood refrigerators, among others. A new computerized finance system was also launched recently to make financial transactions more transparent and thus provide more security to its donors.

Become a Red Cross volunteer

Gordon added that he aims to use the occasion to further promote volunteerism. We want the public to support the Red Cross not only because of the assistance it brings to the poor but also because its an excellent training ground where volunteers can learn leadership and develop a strong character while contributing to a better future for our nation, he said.

At present, the PNRC is active in six major humanitarian services, namely, providing relief and rehabilitation assistance to disaster victims; providing safe blood to indigents; conducting health care education in vulnerable communities; giving safety and basic life support (e.g. CPR) training; providing psychosocial support and other social services; and providing the youth with opportunities for civic work. Each service maintains a formidable network of well-trained volunteers who are ready to lend a helping hand anytime, anywhere.

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