Red Phone (photo credit Jake Cecil)

The Red Cross. Celebrating 100 years of helping people here in Australia in 2014, they’re a household name and a bit of an icon!

Red Cross Australia help people nationally and globally. They provide assistance in many diverse areas. We’ve all had some experience with them, whether they’ve helped in a time of need, or you’ve seen their humanitarian work on TV. As well as providing timely assistance in times of disaster, the little daily services provided are just as laudable. Someone very close to me, due to her age, receives a daily phone call from a Red Cross volunteer just to check that she is ok.

Red Cross Australia began as a branch of the British Red Cross Society on 13 August 1914 at Government House, Melbourne, nine days after the outbreak of World War I. Throughout the decades, The Red Cross have focused on social welfare, national emergencies, natural disasters, building the blood bank and first aid programs. Today one million Red Cross members, volunteers, donors, staff, blood donors, recipients and supporters make a positive difference to the lives of people in need every day.

From responding to large scale disasters to tackling disadvantage and helping vulnerable children and supporting families facing personal crisis, The Red Cross are there for everyone in need. Their watchwords are humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity and universality. To me, all of these traits are most admirable in a charitable organisation!

I urge you to consider The Red Cross as a great organisation to donate to. It doesn’t have to be monetary – giving blood is a great way to help out. I went just the other day, and it really isn’t a big deal – plenty of TLC and snacks provided, too!

This month, 10% of all The Silver Forge sales will be donated to Red Cross Australia. If you’d like to treat yourself to a little something, and help a very worthy cause, head over to The Silver Forge shop now!