Pledge of Ongoing Support Enables Red Cross to Prepare for and Respond to Disasters
WASHINGTON, DC, August 30, 2018 — The American Red Cross today recognized Anthem Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc., for supporting Red Cross Disaster Relief through the Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) with an annual commitment of $1 million.
ADGP members pledge donations year-round, in advance of major disasters, to ensure the Red Cross can respond immediately with comfort and care when disasters occur, help families during the recovery process, and ensure communities become better prepared for the next disaster. Donations from members like Anthem Foundation support Red Cross disaster relief activities, including sheltering, feeding, purchasing and distributing relief supplies, storing equipment, maintaining vehicles, and providing health and emotional support.
“The American Red Cross relies on the generosity of our volunteers, donors and partners to fulfill our lifesaving mission,” said American Red Cross President and CEO Gail McGovern. “Thanks to the support of Anthem Foundation and other ADGP members, the Red Cross can immediately respond to the needs of people affected by disasters whenever and wherever they strike.”
“Anthem Foundation is committed to supporting initiatives that can have a positive impact on the health and well-being of the communities we serve, and when it comes to disaster relief efforts, we want to ensure communities have the needed resources before disaster strikes, said Lance Chrisman, executive director of Anthem Foundation. “We’re proud to partner with the American Red Cross and other organizations that help provide an appropriate and thoughtful response, particularly in communities where our employees and consumers may be directly affected.”
Each year, the Red Cross responds to nearly 64,000 disasters across the country, including home fires, hurricanes, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes and wildfires. Red Cross services are provided to people in need of assistance at no cost and regardless of income through the generosity of Red Cross donors.
In addition to supporting disaster relief efforts, Anthem’s contribution enables the Red Cross to deliver services to military and veterans at every stage of their military life through Red Cross offices across the country on more than a hundred installations around the world—including Djibouti and Kuwait. Through our Service to Armed Forces efforts, the Red Cross has trained more than 15,300 family members in improving coping skills and resilience, provided over 304,000 emergency communication services to more than 79,000 military members and their families and has distributed nearly 782,000 care, comfort and therapy items at military hospitals and medical facilities. The Red Cross has also served more than 112,000 individual service members through rehabilitation and morale programs.
Other members of the Annual Disaster Giving Program at the $1 million level include these major leading companies, foundations and organizations: Adelson Family Foundation; American Airlines; Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Bank of America; Brown & Brown Insurance; Caterpillar Foundation; The Clorox Company; ConocoPhillips; Costco Wholesale; Delta Air Lines; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Foundation; FedEx; Grainger; The Home Depot Foundation; LDS Charities; Lowe's Companies, Inc.; Mazda North American Operations; Microsoft Corp.; Nationwide Foundation; New Balance Foundation and New Balance Athletics; PepsiCo Foundation; State Farm; VSP Global; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; and The Walt Disney Company.
Individuals can help people affected by disasters by making a gift to American Red Cross Disaster Relief. Donations to Disaster Relief enable the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small. Visit redcross.org, call 1-800-REDCROSS or text the word REDCROSS to 90999 to make a $10 donation.
About Anthem Foundation
The Anthem Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Anthem, Inc. and through charitable contributions and programs, the Foundation promotes the inherent commitment of Anthem, Inc. to enhance the health and well-being of individuals and families in communities that Anthem, Inc. and its affiliated health plans serve. The Foundation focuses its funding on strategic initiatives that address and provide innovative solutions to health care challenges, as well as promoting the Healthy Generations Program, a multi-generational initiative that targets specific disease states and medical conditions. These disease states and medical conditions include: prenatal care in the first trimester, low birth weight babies, cardiac morbidity rates, long term activities that decrease obesity and increase physical activity, diabetes prevalence in adult populations, adult pneumococcal and influenza vaccinations and smoking cessation. The Foundation also coordinates the company’s year-round Associate Giving program which provides a 50 percent match of associates’ pledges, as well as its Volunteer Time Off and Dollars for Doers community service programs. To learn more about the Anthem Foundation, please visit http://www.anthem.foundation and its blog at https://medium.com/anthemfoundation.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us on social media.