Red Cross Founder's Day

American Red Cross (ARC) was established in Washington, D.C. on May 21, 1881, by Clara Barton. She founded the American chapter after learning of the Red Cross in Geneva, Switzerland. In 1869, she went to Europe and became involved in the work of the International Red Cross during the Franco-Prussian War. She was determined to bring the organization to America.

ARC is a nationwide network of more than 650 chapters and 36 blood service regions. Approximately 500,000 Red Cross volunteers, including FemaCorps and AmeriCorps members, and 30,000 employees annually mobilize relief to people affected by more than 67,000 disasters, train almost 12 million people in necessary medical skills and exchange more than a million emergency messages for U.S. military service personnel and their family members. ARC is the largest supplier of blood and blood products to more than 3,000 hospitals and assists victims of international disasters and conflicts worldwide. In 2006 the organization had over $6 billion in total revenues. Revenue from blood and blood products alone was over $2 billion.