Written by Amy Miller, American Red Cross Kentucky Region Communications Manager

Between coordinating her daughter’s activities, staying involved with the Fort Knox community and volunteering with the American Red Cross, January Parker leads a busy life.

January is a Red Cross volunteer with the Services to the Armed Forces program at Fort Knox. Originally from Ohio, January and her husband, Jonathon, moved to Kentucky with their daughter in 2024 from a military base in Stuttgart, Germany after her husband was stationed at Fort Knox. Her husband has been active military for 23 years. Between the two of them, they have traveled thousands of miles following his service.

When they arrived at Fort Knox, January decided she wanted to give back to families like hers. She found her calling in Santa’s Workshop.

“I was introduced to Santa's Workshop when I went to the newcomers briefing last year when we first got here at Fort Knox,” said January. “I wanted to give back to the kids.”

Unique to Fort Knox, Santa’s Workshop is a program run by American Red Cross volunteers to provide free toys to Fort Knox military families with children who may be financially challenged during the holiday season. Parents begin shopping around the first two weeks of December, when Red Cross volunteers assist parents in selecting toys for their children. 

January made Santa's Workshop her priority when she arrived and jumped right in. As one of the leads for the workshop, she is in charge of coordinating with families, collecting toys and contacting the units on base to see if they're interested in participating by doing a toy ruck march, a military training exercise involving walking long distances while wearing a backpack (rucksack) loaded with gear.

“25 pounds is usually what's in the ruck sack,” said January, “But in [a toy ruck march] we make it fun and festive, and they just get to bring a toy. Most of them ruck from their headquarters to our workshop here on Fort Knox.”

January and the Red Cross volunteers turn the marches into a special event for the soldiers participating: “We have music and we provide snacks and hot coffee and hot chocolate, and it's just a fun event.”

Last year, January coordinated nearly 20 toy ruck marches to support Santa’s Workshop. While the ruck marches usually happen closer to the holiday season, January shared that she begins preparations for it in March. Closer to the holiday season, January coordinates with families to schedule their shopping trips over a two-week period. In the 2025 season, January and the Santa’s Workshop volunteers helped coordinate and shop with close to 100 families.

“After [the families] set their appointment, they will come in, be greeted by our hospitality team and get their own personal shopper, which we like to call “elves” because we're at Santa's Workshop,” said January. She works with each family to help pick out toys that match their child’s age and interest.

In addition to volunteering with the Services to the Armed Forces program, January also volunteers with the regional Red Cross communications team by helping take photos of events and activities on Fort Knox. January shared she volunteers because of the way it makes her feel to give back to her community and to the soldiers on Fort Knox: “I feel so much better after I do it. Even if it’s just one smile, I feel like I’ve succeeded.”

As the spouse of an active-duty soldier, volunteering and connecting with other military families is close to her heart.

“If I can just relieve some of the stress, even for 30 minutes, while they're here at the workshop, then I feel like I've succeeded,” said January. “They don't have to think about all life's stresses.”

January encourages others to volunteer with the Red Cross: “I would say give an hour. It'll change your mood. The Red Cross has a lot of opportunities for you to volunteer and there’s something for everybody.”