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A Brief History
1882 - President Arthur signed and the United States Senate ratified the Geneva Treaty of International Red Cross.
1893 - American National Red Cross formed.
1900 - American Red Cross chartered by Congress.
1905 - Charter amended.
1916 - Wake County Chapter organized at the home of Mrs. W.B. Grimes.
1916 - First "Bandage Rolling" unit set up at Christ Church. Later that year, the chapter moved to the Woman's Club and then to a space provided by the State Department of Agriculture.
1917 - March 12th - Charter granted to the Wake County Chapter of the American Red Cross signed by President Woodrow Wilson. During those days, volunteers rolled bandages, made bed shirts for hospitalized soldiers at Camp Polk and provided canteen service for troop trains, sheltered feeding stations and soldiers' Bath House near the railroad station in Raleigh.
1919 - Auxiliaries and Branches of Red Cross in Wake County disbanded. The work was carried on by the central office in Raleigh.
1922 - Chapter began teaching First Aid to the general public.
1927 - The first First Aid station was placed at the State Fair.
1931 - Red Cross begins separate Fund Campaign and leaves from the Community Chest.
1941 - During World War II, the chapter provides layettes for newborn babies of servicemen, provides kits for comfort, social workers verify home conditions for service personnel request.
1942 - ARC headquarters moves to 209 South McDowell Street.
1943 - Chapter headquarters moves to 101 W. Hargett Street.
1950 - Chapter provides candy stripers, first aid courses and baby care courses.
1951 - Chapter participates in Blood for Defense Program. The first blood quota was 2,200 pints per year. The slogan was "More Red Blood - Fewer White Crosses".
1953 - Headquarters moves to 202 W. Morgan and chapter joins United Funds.
1955 - New location at 301 N. Blount St. purchased for $35,000.
1963 - Celebration of One Hundredth Anniversary of the International Red Cross.
1964 - Formal "blood services" program started.
1968 - Chapter has full service of program and provides "ditty" bags for soldiers in Vietnam.
1969 - Chapter sells office to State of North Carolina. Wake Memorial Hospital entered into an agreement with chapter to provide blood for community. First bloodmobile sponsored by veterans at NCSU.
1969 - Poe Family donates present location land to ARC.
1972 - Building campaign of $250,000 undertaken to build chapter.
1973 - Chapter House at 100 Peartree Lane completed and dedicated.
1973 - Wake County Red Cross serves as sponsoring agency for Meals on Wheels with meals transported in Red Cross vans from Wake Hospital to Hillyer Memorial Christian Church.
1973 - Social Maturity course started in county.
1978 - Kidney Dialysis transportation service started.
1981 - Multi-Media First Aid courses started in Wake County Public Schools for all 8th graders. Later in the fall, CPR also started for all 10th graders.
1982 - Chapter name changed to Triangle Area Chapter upon merger with Johnston, Franklin and Warren Counties. The chapter newsletter, the Volunteer Voice starts.
1984 - Annual Volunteer Recognition begins at McKimmon Center of NCSU.
1986 - Raleigh Board of Realtors donates 23 foot camper trailer to Disaster Services for Mass Feeding vehicles.
1987 - Fund Drive and plans for addition to chapter started.
1988 - April 10th, dedication and open house for building addition and previous building.
1988 - The chapter suffers the worst disaster to affect Wake County, the November Tornado, that left a 9 county area in panic and destruction.
1990 - Service to Military Families Volunteers worked closely with our Disaster Team to receive and welcome home 706 evacuees repatriated from Kuwait.
1991 - Service to Military Families Volunteers were inundated with telephone calls providing emergency communication between military personnel stationed in the Persian Gulf and their families in our community.
1992 - The Chapter was designated as State Coordinating Chapter for North Carolina. The Chapter was designated as the N. C. Lead Chapter for Disaster Services
1995 - Cary Branch Office begins new Blood Center Operations at 305-A Ashville Avenue with Cary Mayor Koka Booth giving the first pint of blood.
1996 - January 16th, dedication and open house for new Cary Branch Office with new Blood Center and Health & Safety training classroom. Hurricane Fran takes a direct hit on the Raleigh area; Chapter’s Disaster Team opens shelters, serves meals and provide financial assistance to help families recover.
1999 – March – Chapter unveils “Sheltee” prototype, which is a mobile trailer unit containing supplies for the establishment and support of an emergency sheltering facility during a disaster. The Sheltee concept was adopted by chapters throughout the state who acquired their own Sheltees through sponsorship by NC Emergency management and local supporters.
1999 - Hurricane Floyd devastates eastern North Carolina; National disaster relief efforts initially coordinated from the Chapter and continued for the next two years.
2001 – July - North Raleigh Service Center opens with new Blood Center and Health & Safety training classrooms at 7201 Creedmoor Rd. thanks to a major contribution from CP&L.
2002 – December Ice Storm – While operating on generator power, Chapter responds to ice storm by opening shelters for hundreds left without power during freezing weather.
2003 – March – Chapter welcomes Barry Porter as new executive director.
2005 -- Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma brought suffering to people in an area larger than North and South Carolina combined. In total, the American Red Cross provided financial assistance to more than 1.4 million families or approximately 4 million people; provided 3.8 million overnight stays in 1400 shelters and served more than 68 million meals and snacks.
The Triangle Area Chapter provided financial assistance (food, lodging, new clothing, medications, rent, deposits and mental health support) to more than 1,100 families that came to the Raleigh area.
2007 - The Triangle Area Chapter is appointed Regional Chapter to work in collaboration with neighboring chapters Central North Carolina, Moore and Orange Counties..
The Triangle Area Chapter expands services to a six county area including Wake, Johnston, Franklin, Lee, Chatham and Warren Counties.
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