SIDNEY — The American Red Cross has made a decision to sell the building where its Sidney office is located.
“The closing of the building is business related and has absolutely no impact on our disaster response or any of our service delivery,” says Lynne Gump, executive director of the six-county Northern Miami Valley Ohio Chapter, which includes Shelby County. “Our focus has always been and will always be serving the people of Shelby County, and we will continue to fulfill our mission by providing them with life-changing disaster relief, as well as preparedness activities, training and services to our Armed Forces and Veterans.”
The building is far larger than what is needed to deliver services and although a vital building, no longer meets the needs of Red Cross clients, said Gump. This does not mean, she said, that the Red Cross is leaving Shelby County. Training programs will continue to be offered throughout the area, volunteers will continue to operate out of the county. There will be no difference in service delivery.
In the last year, in Shelby County alone, more than 500 people received Health and Safety training, Twenty-six military families were aided, more than 225 smoke detectors have been installed and the families of those homes educated on how to escape and how fast they must get out. New programs like the preparedness education program for third to fifth graders, called the Pillowcase Project, have been delivered to more than 375 children.
“All of these programs and services have been delivered with established and new volunteers, who have gone through extensive training, live and work in Shelby County, and will continue to whether there is a ‘bricks and mortar’ presence in the community or not,” said Gump, “We are still seeking a partner that would like to offer us free administrative space and in exchange we have volunteers that can maintain that office, answer phones, handle client questions, everything you would expect paid office staff to perform.”
If you have questions, would like more information about any of the American Red Cross classes or programs, or have space to offer, contact Gump at [email protected] or phone the Shelby County office at 937-492-6151. The office will remain open until a qualified buyer is found and is being shown by local real estate agents.
