Are you prepared for an earthquake?

A lot of people forget that here in the Salt Lake Valley we live on a fault line in earthquake territory, we could experience a 7.0 magnitude earthquake at anytime. To help our community as a whole be more prepared for such an event, we are participating in the Great Salt Lake Shakeout Earthquake drill next Tuesday April 17th.

To participate in the earthquake drill the Red Cross is opening up shelters, visit a Red Cross shelter during the drill to teach your family all about emergencies and preparedness.

It's a great opportunity to show your kids what it would be like if

disaster struck and you had to evacuate your home with only the clothes on your back. Teach your kids the importance of being prepared and to be aware of possible disasters.

Click here to register

St. George Heroes

Thanks to everyone who has joined us for our Heroes Events this year, we have three down and one to go! If you haven't been to a Heroes event yet it's not too late!

Our last Heroes Event of the year is our St. George Heroes Event, which will be next thursday March 29th at 12:00PM at the Abby Inn in St. George.

Click here for ticket information

Here is a little about our St. George Lifetime Hero Award recipient.

Quentin Murdock is a World War II decorated veteran who served with courage and honor, earning a Silver Star, two Bronze Stars, three Presidential Unit Citations, European Theater with Five campaigns medal, Combat Infantry Badge, the D-Day Medal, and the Victory Medal. He was involved in some of the fiercest battles of World War II (including being in the early waves of soldiers to go ashore on Omaha Beach). He underwent many trials in the service of our country during his 700 days of active duty, including being under enemy fire repeatedly and contracting malaria. After the war he became a farmer and is one of the pioneers of the above-ground sprinkler system. He also devised an innovative way to use potato waste products to feed cattle. For his impressive contributions in the areas of both military service and agricultural innovation, he will receive the 2012 Lifetime Hero Award.

2012 Ogden Heroes Event

This Wednesday is the 3rd of 4 Heroes events we are having this year.

The Northern Utah Chapter (Ogden) Heroes Event will take place at 8:00 AM on Wednesday March 21st at the Ogden Union Station.

For tickets to the event click here!

Here is a little about Weber County Search and Rescue who are going to be honored at the event with the 2012 Lifetime Achievement Award.

Weber County Search and rescue is a volunteer extension of the Weber County Sherif'f''s Department made up of dedicated men and women that volunteer their time, training and abilities to provide search and rescue services for Weber County and the surrounding areas. Weber County Search and Rescue volunteers spend thousands of hours, annually preparing and training and for emergencies.

The organization consists of seven specialized teams: Mountain Rescue, Swift Water Rescue, Winter Rescue, Under Water Recovery, Canine Search, Mounted Posse, Off-highway Vehicles, Preventative Search and Rescue. In addition, there is an ATV team, a horse team, a white water team, and an airboat team.

Weber County is fortunate to have more than 100 volunteers, specializing in different degrees of qualifications. These volunteers invest a lots of time and energy into being a party of the team. They go out on an average of 20-40 rescue missions per year. Seach and Rescue volunteeres are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

These professionals are dedicated to saving lives, while putting themselves at risk every day for citizens of Weber County. The community is lucky to have such brave and committed individuals who give of themselves to help others in need.

Provo Heroes

Tomorrow is our Mountain Valley Chapter (Provo) Heroes Event!!

Kim Olsen is our LIfetime Achievement Award Winner and she will be honored at the event tomorrow.

Here is a little about Kim and what she does to make a difference in the lives of families in the armed forces.

"I am dedicated to supporting the families of our fallen servicemen, and women," says Kim Olsen, recipient of the 2012 American Red Cross Lifetime Achievement Award.

After her son was killed in Afghanistan in 2012, Kim's life-focus shifted, and she set up a scholarship at Mountain View High School in his name. Wanting to do even more, she founded the gold Star Stars project which has created and distributed hundreds of personalized gold stars memorializing military members who have lost their lives.

In addition she has personally sent messages of consolation and comfort to hundreds of grieving families across the United States as part of the Solider's Angels project. She also sends care packages to Afghan interpreters who risk their lives daily to assist our military forces in Afghanistan.

Kim volunteers with the American Red Cross in the area of Service to the Armed Forces, connecting families through emergency messaging and educating military families about resources available to them.

Before she became involved in supporting military families, she dedicated years of service in other areas, such as founding her own hospice company and using her creativity to help low-income families afford funerals for loved ones.

Her lifetime of compassionate service is truly inspiring.

LIfetime Achievement Award 2012 Award winner

Yesterday was our 2012 Greater Salt Lake Area Heroes Event, it was a great success.

Thank you to everyone that came out and Supported us!

One of the Heroes Honored at the Event was Ken Kraudy, he received our Lifetime Achievement Award.

Here is a little about him and what he has done for our community over the years.

For more than twenty years, Ken Kraudy has served our community both professionally and as a volunteer. He works with local government, businesses and community groups to assess and enhance Sandy city's preparedness for emergencies and disasters. Ken is a leader in many volunteer organizations.

As the emergency Management Coordinator of Sandy City, Ken Kraudy established a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program that is benchmark for other cities to follow. He is the chairperson of the Sandy City Citizen Corps Council and the Sandy City Business continuity and Disaster Management Programs.

Over the past decade Ken has been a notable example of leadership in disaster preparedness. He served on the HOmeland Security Grants Council (HSGC), Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD), Citizen Corp, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the Urban Areas Security Initiative (UASI) program. He is a past-president of the Utah Emergency management Association (UEMA) and has served on the board of directors of the Utah Association of COntingency PLanners (UACP).

During the hurricane season of 2004, Ken was deployed to two presidentially declared disasters in Florida where he was assisted with initial damage assessment and mass care efforts. Ken's commitment and hard work have made our communities safer, better prepared and ready to respond.

Utah Region Heroes Event 2012

It's that time again! Time for our American Red Cross Annual Heroes Event!

Our first Heroes event for the Greater Salt Lake Area is less than 2 weeks away!

What are the Heroes events?

The annual American Red Cross Heroes Luncheon is an occasion where influential community and business leaders throughout the Salt Lake area come together to celebrate and formally honor individuals within the community who reflect the mission of Red Cross. These “everyday heroes” responded in time of need with selfless acts of courage and compassion, or risked personal injury or significant personal sacrifices to help others in need. The American Red Cross sees these individuals as Heroes, whether they are police, firefighters, children, animals or everyday people.

For information head over to our website

Youth Volunteers, learn about humanitarian law at this years first annual "War Games"

In order to help youth understand what is and is not legal and appropriate during wartime situations, Camp Williams partnered with the American Red Cross Utah Region to help them learn by doing. The event took place on Monday, January 16th, from noon to 5:30 pm, the youth played an extended “war game” on the grounds of and in the buildings of Camp Williams.

Teams of youth from the American Red Cross Youth Services Program rotated through various stations simulating wartime situations, including trying to get humanitarian aid such as food across a field without being “sniped” and treating the wounded based solely on medical need, among other exercises. At each station, points were given for following International Humanitarian Law and subtracted for not following it. The exercise concluded with a “War Crimes Trial” where youth participants found out how well they fared in following International Humanitarian Law, which was based on the Geneva Conventions designed to protect combatants and non-combatants during war.

Click this link for an article about the event