March is Red Cross Month
How We Started. Where We’re Going.
The tradition of March being declared Red Cross Month began in 1943 with a proclamation from President Franklin D. Roosevelt and for more than 75 years, all U.S. presidents have designated this month.
For generations, Americans have answered the call to help—standing together through war, disaster, and uncertainty. Red Cross Month honors this shared history of service and hope.
That same spirit lives on today, right here in Tennessee. Every day, people in our community roll up their sleeves to help neighbors recover, prepare, and thrive.
Together, we’ve made an impact—and together, we will continue to make a difference.
Our Impact, Right Here in Your Community
Responded to 1,780 disaster operations
Installed 3,545 free smoke alarms
Delivered 9,310 services for military members, veterans and their families
Trained 219,883 people in lifesaving skills like CPR, First Aid and AED
Stories from Your Local Red Cross
It’s another December day inside the American Red Cross Blood, Platelet and Plasma Donation Center on Charlotte Avenue in Nashville, Tennessee, where generous blood and platelet donors are doing their part to help save lives. But it’s not just any other day for Gary Jamison. Today is the day he makes his first blood donation since he learned he had prostate cancer in 2023.
“I’m glad to be here,” Gary shares. “I mean, I wasn’t sure I was going to get back here, but I knew that was my goal.”
Gary has been a blood donor since the 1990s. He says he was compelled to remain a committed donor for decades once he learned he was saving multiple lives each time he gave blood.
“For me personally, it saved my life," Gary says. "Being a donor all those years literally saved my life.”
It was a day full of firsts for Brandy Robertson and her son as they arrived at the airport on February 23, 2006. They were on their way to Hawaii to join her husband who had recently been assigned to his first duty station there. This would be their first time living outside of Tennessee and it was her 11-year-old son’s first flight.
“Everything was brand new to us,” Brandy says. “I had never lived outside of Tennessee prior to this. Neither had my son. And yeah, I was a brand-new nurse as well.”
After two flights and about 10 hours of flying, they finally landed in Hawaii. But as she turned on her phone for the first time since boarding her first flight that morning, she was inundated with text messages and voicemails.
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Gallatin Lifeguards Awarded for Helping Rescue Young Man
Red Cross Donut Dolly Begins New Journey Overseas
Inspired to Help?
Your donation brings hope to our community—shelter, food, and support for families in need. Donate today.
Volunteering brings purpose, connection, and hope—to others and to you. Take the first step today.
Every two seconds, a life depends on blood. Your donation can bring hope to a child, a mom, a family.
From First Aid to CPR, Red Cross training prepares you to protect your loved ones and your community.
Local Events
What Your Gift Can Provide
In a disaster, children and families often lose their home and are left exposed to the elements. $25 can provide 5 warm blankets to protect them from the cold and help them sleep comfortably in emergency shelters.
Give a gift to make sure no family goes hungry after a disaster strikes by supporting our shelter kitchens and mobile feeding. $55 can provide a hot meal and snacks to 5 people after a disaster.
Give a gift to show our heroes and veterans you care. Help volunteers warmly welcome service members and veterans at medical facilities. Your gift of $145 can provide 20 kits filled with toiletries and other essentials to make them feel at home.
When disaster strikes, parents can lose everything — including essentials they need to keep their babies healthy while staying at an emergency shelter. $150 can provide a crib for a family in need.
Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood — a mother giving birth, a child with cancer, a neighbor in an accident and countless others. $200 can help ensure that the life-saving gift of blood will be available whenever and wherever it is needed.
Emergencies can force families to leave their homes with nothing but the clothes on their backs. $200 can provide a full day of emergency shelter for a family of 4 impacted by disaster, including 3 meals, 2 blankets, 1 cot, snacks and personal hygiene supplies.
Help families affected by disasters around the world. A gift of $625 can provide four families of five with a complete emergency kit, including hygiene supplies, blankets, tarps, water containers, a kitchen set and a crank-powered lamp, radio and charger.
