By: Hermalene M. Taylor, Red Cross volunteer

Sunlight pours into the America Building 19 lobby at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) in Bethesda, Maryland. As outpatients and visitors stream through the busy lobby, it’s a typical Tuesday at the information desk for Andrea Rander, a volunteer with the Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces program.  

She and the team are actively engaged as I approach. Her warm energy and radiant smile seem to speak before words are spoken. We step away from the desk toward the grand piano in the open area of the lobby. Andrea spots an oasis of seats, just behind the piano. She sits with outward ease. Her poise and composure bring a sense of compassion and empathy that set a reassuring tone, welcoming visitors to the hospital. The Red Cross is significant in Andrea’s life of service. “It is why I’ve chosen here [WRNMMC] to volunteer because it’s been a part of my life for so long,” she says. 

Though the path was not one she planned, it was a sudden and unexpected twist that she embraced as a call to help others. As we talk, a pianist spontaneously plays a medley of songs. Andrea’s eyes beam as she reveals her familiarity and anticipation of the musician’s playlist. Visitors of all ages and hospital staff pause to listen, hum and sing to many favorites, including a Lionel Richie song –– Still.  

I hear Andrea’s voice. In those moments, the joy and harmony of music resonate with the humanity that comes from volunteering. It connects us all. 

This is her Red Cross story.  

A native New Yorker, Andrea settled in Washington, D.C., with her husband as an Army military spouse. During his tour in the Vietnam War, she endured one of life’s darkest moments when he was captured and imprisoned for more than five years. In a time of private pain and public protest, Andrea was thrust into the spotlight along with a core group of prisoners of war (POW) wives as voices for the release of their spouses and all those with family members missing in action (MIA). In 1967, she was a founding board member and the only African-American woman on the National League of Families of POW/MIA.  

Her first encounter with American Red Cross volunteers was during preparations for her husband’s release. The volunteers met with Andrea and others to offer guidance and to be a supportive resource. She recalls, “So, you see how the Red Cross is integrated into my life.” The impact of that meeting became a connection of purpose that endures. 

While her husband was stationed in Karlsruhe, Germany, Andrea joined forces with the then-post commander’s spouse to create a Red Cross presence on the installation. She served as publicity chair and newsletter editor.  

Back home, in what she describes as “one of the greatest times in [her] life,” Andrea established the Red Cross office in the department of social work as director of volunteers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). She created a recruitment and volunteer language interpreters’ program. What started with two Spanish-speaking interpreters grew to 61 languages to accommodate the growing need for diverse languages.  

Recently, she had a full-circle moment at the WRNMMC info desk. In March, she met a visitor wearing a USS Stockdale hat. The two shared their mutual connections and relationships from more than 50 years ago with National League of Families POW/MIA founder Sybil Stockdale, Admiral James Stockdale, and then-Sergeant First Class Don Rander. 

Andrea says, "Serving the military and the families…is what [she] is here for.” With 16 years and counting, she loves Red Cross WRNMMC. ‘Still.'

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The American Red Cross has supported our nation's military since our founding more than 140 years ago.

Find out more about our Service to the Armed Forces program at RedCross.org/SAF