BOISE, IDAHO, Oct. 30, 2017 — After 30 years with the Red Cross, things have pretty much come full circle for Steve Carr.
Carr is the newest member of the American Red Cross of Greater Idaho’s board of directors, a position he also held in the mid-1980s. The Idaho Falls attorney and owner of Carr Land and Title has served the Red Cross in several capacities over the course of three decades both locally and abroad, most notably as the only American elected to the Standing Commission of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.
Based in Geneva, Switzerland, the Standing Commission is the highest governing body of the worldwide organization. He was elected to two terms and served as the commission’s vice chair.
“The Idaho Chapter of the Idaho Red Cross is excited to welcome Mr. Steven Carr to our board,” Red Cross of Greater Idaho board chairman Mike Willits said. “Mr. Carr’s experience on the local, state and international levels will add essential perspective to the efforts of our Idaho Chapter. His countless hours devoted to the relief of suffering at home and abroad is to be commended. We are very honored to have his talents here in Idaho.”
Carr said he’s eager to return to his Red Cross roots.
“It’s good for me. It’s nice to reconnect with my community, to circle back,” Carr said. “Everything has changed so much through the years. I’ll be learning just like all new volunteers do.”
Carr, who has a degree in political science from Utah State University and a law degree from Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, served on the Red Cross Board of Governors from 2002 to 2008 and chaired the International Services Committee. He also served on the board of Refugees International.
In November, he will travel to Antalya, Turkey, for the General Assembly and Council of Delegates of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, bringing together national Red Cross and Red Crescent societies from 190 countries.
While Carr has spent countless hours in Red Cross board rooms from Blackfoot, Idaho, to Geneva, Switzerland, it’s the time he spent seeing the organization’s humanitarian efforts in action, in places like Chad, South Sudan, Honduras and Louisiana, that keeps him truly active and engaged.
“I would not have stayed with the Red Cross if I didn’t see how important the work was,” he said. “I think what keeps me involved more than anything is the commitment to neutrality. I like the idea of the Red Cross serving anyone and everyone despite what side of the world they’re on and what side of the war they’re on. It’s the humanity, serving the victims of crime and disaster, and the efficiency of what we do.”
