Red Cross Month is a special time for us to highlight our incredible Red Crossers who make our organization great. Today, we spotlight James Cox, who has a rich background in service work.

Jim is no stranger to the demands of volunteer work and finds joy in helping members of his community, no matter the task. He began his journey in the police force but soon found a calling in the health care profession, saying: “I started in Law Enforcement in the Military, then I retired after a few jobs. I went on to be a nurse in a Mental Hospital. I have always cared for others. Once, the doctor said I could no longer work. I looked for something that would keep me busy. Red Cross was it. I love it."

Jim is also no stranger to the importance of compassion. He says that "seeing other volunteers caring for people like it was their family member" is one of the most rewarding parts of being a volunteer. “Nothing is better than seeing a volunteer holding hands and talking with someone in need," he says.

He shares that one of his most memorable experiences was training to become the manager of the Shelter Management department, which is an important part of our mission to provide disaster relief to families in need. He says, "I love sheltering, I love supervising, so I trained as a Shelter Supervisor, then to Shelter Manager. I was in Iowa for the floods; people would come in crying over their losses. I was able to give them comfort and understanding. There is no greater blessing than to render compassion to a family in need."

Our volunteer work is more than just running blood drives and raising awareness. Sometimes, the work is much more intense, such as house fire calls, disaster relief aid, and hospital work. Jim's sound advice to new volunteers would be: "Come with me to three house fires, and I will teach you how to become a strong volunteer. Once you see what we do then you can venture out and train in other areas. There is always something out there you will enjoy. It could be that it might lead you to work full-time for the Red Cross."