From her days in Northeastern Kansas as a Girl Scout, candy-striper and “Gray Lady” to the present day, the eternally youthful Nancy Meidinger has enjoyed a rich 70-year history as a volunteer and staff member with the American Red Cross.

To say that Nancy, 82, is eclectic is an understatement. Meidinger, who currently lives in Brownsville, Texas, is a registered nurse with a background that includes serving as a nurse on a precursor to what is known today as Life Flight, serving as an emergency room supervisor, as a consultant working with architects on the design of health care facilities, and as a health care administrator. Her profile on Volunteer Connection reads like a GAP directory, having done almost every job the Red Cross has to offer in blood, training and disaster services. She’s even received national notoriety for teaching people how to create custom-made Teddy Bears. In what may be a metaphor for Nancy’s approach to life, she is literally riding the waves in the Gulf of Mexico much like she has tackled almost everything in her life, with great gusto.

“I have this goal, which I’m accomplishing, to ride a wave at least once, if not twice a month on the island,” she said.

Nancy’s seven-decade long Red Cross story began with her parents, Dr. Ray Meidinger and Mary Hale Meidinger, RN, both Red Cross volunteers. After graduating high school in Hiawatha, Kansas, and from the Baptist Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in San Antonio, she moved to Tennessee where she worked in a variety of roles in the health care industry. She was employed by the Nashville area Red Cross chapter in 2005, where she was involved in training, volunteer recruitment and in disaster response. After relocating to Texas in 2010, she served as the Texas State Liaison and later as SWARM Division Health Service Advisor. She was also a board member for the South Texas Chapter. Reflecting her love for animals, Nancy has also served as Pet Liaison for the Houston Region, a member of the Disaster Animal Rescue Team and as a docent and board members at the Gladys Porter Zoo in Brownsville.

“My first experience was the Girl Scouts and then as a candy striper,” Meidinger said. “Back then, you could be a Red Cross volunteer and be a phlebotomist because they only hired RNs. But I would fill in. I wasn’t paid, but I would do it for the experience and it was fun.”

For her decades of service to the American Red Cross, Meidinger was presented the Clara Barton Award, named after the fellow nurse and Red Cross founder, in 2017.

These are challenging times in South Texas. First, there was the Covid-19 pandemic which forced most of the training and interaction online. There is also the massive influx of immigrants seeking refuge in the United States and overburdening local resources. Still, Nancy Meidinger is proud of her Red Cross service.

“It’s been a worthwhile 70 years,” she said. “I am blessed, knowing how quickly time passes!”

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent 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 about volunteering or contributing to the Red Cross’s mission, please call 1-800-RED-CROSS, visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us in Twitter at @RedCross.