This week is Red Cross Week and with 2014 marking 100 years since the start of the First World War, the charity looks at the changing face of fundraising and giving
During the Great War, the British Red Cross did everything from nursing and air raid duty to searching for missing people, transporting the wounded and providing short-term loans of medical equipment, such as wheelchairs, for sick and wounded soldiers.
Since then, the charity has continued to support people in crisis, from victims of international conflicts and disasters, to emergency relief for people in the UK and first aid training. The British Red Cross also provides short-term help to thousands of vulnerable people in the UK each year, including support at home, transport and mobility aids.
Fundraising was of vital importance to support the charity’s activity throughout the First World War – and they still rely on the generosity of the public to this day. Each year thousands of volunteers give their time to not only help people in crisis but, crucially, help raise funds to continue this essential work.
Watch our video as Mark Astarita, director of fundraising at the British Red Cross, talks about changes to the way crises are reported, the different ways we as a nation respond and the impact of fundraising initiatives both here in the UK and abroad.
