Be A Hero

Mike Thome, Division Vice President of the American Red Cross Central Atlantic Division and Emily Fortman, Division Disaster Executive discuss Sound the Alarm, the nationwide effort to install 50,000 smoke alarms across the country this spring, and how the program is modeled in part after a smoke alarm program begun in Cleveland in 1992. Mike and Emily also discuss volunteering to help with upcoming disasters and maintaining an adequate blood supply for the nation's hospitals. Hosted by Jim McIntyre, Regional Communications Director, Red Cross of Northern Ohio.

The final three winners of the 2022 Acts of Courage Awards, hosted by the American Red Cross of Greater Akron and the Mahoning Valley tell their stories of heroism.

Travis Shrout, a college student from Stow, Ohio explains how he was able to save a mother and her child from a rip current in the Atlantic Ocean be using the lifeguard training he receivedfrom the American Red Cross. He is a recipient of the 2022 Acts of Courage Awards presented by the Red Cross of Greater Akron and the Mahoning Valley.

Adrienne Kapr-Ford, a Disaster Mental Health Supervisor, explains the role of the DMH worker. She also explains how her volunteer Red Cross career began on the Disaster Action Team, responding to the immediate aftermath of home fires. And she discusses the heartbreak of counselling people who have lost everything during last summer's wildfires in California.

Glinda Dames-Fincher, who has lived with sickle cell disease all her life, advocates for expanding the blood donor pool with more diverse donors, in order to help those with sickle cell and other diseases.

Laura Mattimoe, Michelle Nieswender, Kathy Bankowski and Beth Orgel - all volunteers from Northwest Ohio - talk about their recent experience helping people affected by the wildfires in California.

With many experts predicting an active wildfire and hurricane season, the American Red Cross is preparing to help people who will be forced to flee their homes. In this episode, we hear from Mike Parks, Regional CEO of the Red Cross of Northern Ohio; Tim O'Toole, Regional Disaster Officer; Renee Palagyi, Regional Senior Disaster Program Manager; and Christy Peters, Regional Communications Manager. They will explain the positions being sought and reveal how potential volunteers can apply to help people in their own communities and across the country.

The American Red Cross is experiencing a severe blood shortage as the number of trauma cases, organ transplants and elective surgeries rise – and deplete the nation's blood inventory. Jim McIntyre and Christy Peters of the American Red Cross of Northern Ohio are joined by Dr. Christine Schmotzer, Vice Chair of System Pathology Operations and Co-Director of University Hospitals Diagnostic Institute. Dr. Schmotzer is also Medical Director of University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, and she shares her considerable expertise in describing why there's a blood shortage and why donors are in such high demand.