American Red Cross Southeastern Pennsylvania

04/28/2026

Earlier this month, we celebrated 23 extraordinary volunteers who logged 1,000 or more hours of service in FY25. Together, they contributed an astounding 37,749 volunteer hours.

To put that in perspective, a work year for a full-time employee totals about 2,080 hours. So these volunteers donated an equivalent of 18+ years of full-time work in just one year.

We are incredibly grateful for their generosity and dedication to our mission. ❤️ ❤️ ❤️

04/27/2026

April is Pet First Aid Awareness Month, and Reese (pictured below) wants you to remember that pets are family, too!

Accidents can happen anytime, anywhere. Be like Reese's humans and learn how to help your cat or dog in an emergency with our 30‑minute, self‑paced Red Cross Cat and Dog First Aid online course! You can access it on redcross.org.

📱 Reese also invites you to download our FREE Red Cross Pet First Aid app for expert tips, emergency guidance and an animal hospital locator. Search “American Red Cross” in app stores. Reese gives it 2 paws up 🐾

04/26/2026

Spring is in full bloom! Come to give blood or platelets April 13-30 and you’ll receive a $15 e‑gift card to a merchant of your choice. Your donation brings hope to patients who need it most. Schedule today: https://rcblood.org/4qqqWZ6

04/26/2026

- It takes 2,200+ American Red Cross team members working in 116 laboratories and manufacturing sites to process and test the blood needed for patients at about 2,500 hospitals each day. Turn your career into a force for good — join this amazing team: rdcrss.org/3rrqxsR

04/26/2026

- Our celebration of volunteer superstars continues!

Donna Zacker and Chris Robold, pictured below with their spouses Bob (far left) and Jan (far right) -- who are ALSO dedicated Red Cross volunteers -- were recognized earlier this month as Exceptional Disaster Cycle Services Volunteers for Chester and Bucks counties, respectively.

🌟 As RC Care Application Lead and Regional Client Care Manager Volunteer Partner, Donna trains and supports responders, tracks progress and helps keep the workforce prepared. She supports disaster operations across services, provides valuable reporting and insights and continues serving as a Client Care Caseworker and Mass Care Shelter Resident Transition Lead.

🌟 Serving as Regional Logistics Lead, Chris has built a trusted volunteer team and strengthened daily operations and disaster response across SEPA. He's also a key leader of the Home Fire Campaign in Bucks County, supporting smoke‑alarm installations, Sound the Alarm events and improved supply processes.

THANK YOU DONNA & CHRIS ❤️

📷: Donn Greenberg

04/25/2026

- We hope you've enjoyed celebrating just a few of our AMAZING Red Cross SEPA volunteers with us! Before we wrap up the week, here's a few more of our disaster volunteers that we recognized earlier this month.

🌟 Irvin Diaz - A dependable Disaster Action Team responder and cross-trained in Mass Care and Logistics, Irvin is a versatile leader who welcomes new volunteers, keeps teams engaged and always steps up. His dedication to the Red Cross mission made him our FY25 Exceptional Disaster Cycle Services Volunteer for Philadelphia.

🌟 John Gebhardt - Since 2023, John has led preparedness programs that reached over 8,000 students in Delaware County! He's also Delco's Home Fire Campaign Lead, helping install over 1,000 smoke alarms! Did we mention he's also a Blood Donor Ambassador? John was recognized as our FY25 Exceptional Disaster Cycle Services Volunteer for Delco.

🌟 Sean Snyder (not pictured) - As Disaster Action Team Training Coordinator, Sean has created clear, welcoming and meaningful training for fellow volunteers. With a warm teaching style and accessible approach, he helps new volunteers master complex processes with confidence, improving retention and fostering a region-wide culture of learning. He's our FY25 Exceptional Disaster Cycle Services Volunteer for Montgomery County.

Below, Irvin and John are each pictured with SEPA CEO Jennifer Graham (second from right), Delaware Valley Chapter Board Member John Susanin (far left) and Philadelphia Chapter Board Member Kenneth Wong (far right).

📷: Donn Greenberg

04/25/2026

- Nominated and selected by her fellow volunteers, Debbie Tevlin is our FY25 Red Cross Spirit Award recipient. In their nomination, her colleagues wrote, "Debbie is SEPA proud and is always advocating for the best ways to deliver compassionate client care."

She has dedicated over 13 years to the Disaster Action Team (DAT), along with Mass Care and Preparedness teams, making a lasting impact across the region.

Over past year, She also played a key role in transitioning to the chapter model and creating a mentorship approach that supports both new and experienced DAT responders. She also helped develop and now leads a Mass Care Strike Team, and she keeps responders connected through her weekly DAT Chat email update.

Below, Debbie is pictured with Red Cross SEPA CEO Jennifer Graham (second from right), Delaware Valley Chapter Board Member John Susanin (far left) and Philadelphia Chapter Board Member Kenneth Wong (far right).

Thanks for sharing your Red Cross spirit, Debbie ❤️.

📷: Donn Greenberg

04/24/2026

DYK our lab and manufacturing teams help process and test over 6.3 million blood products annually? This , we're celebrating laboratory professionals like Timothy Hall -- a supervisor in our National Molecular Lab in Philadelphia.

Timothy oversees genotyping processes used for blood antigen phenotype prediction to ensure accurate, reliable and compliant results to support patient care.

“What I enjoy most about my current role is the opportunity to encounter novel cases on a regular basis,” he said. “The complexity of blood antigen genetics makes each case unique and intellectually engaging, requiring thoughtful analysis and problem-solving.”

Timothy is one of 2,200+ American Red Cross laboratory and manufacturing professionals who provide blood products for hospital patients and support serologic investigations, laboratory tests and epidemiology research.

Learn about our work: rdcrss.org/WhatWeDo

04/24/2026

- The Red Cross relies on Volunteer Blood Transportation Specialists to get lifesaving blood donations where they need to go. This includes transporting freshly-donated blood from collection sites across SEPA to our Spring Garden Campus in Philadelphia for processing, as well as delivering manufactured blood products from Philadelphia to dozens of hospitals across Eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

We recognized 4 of these essential volunteers for their extraordinary service earlier this month at our Celebration of Volunteers luncheon. They include:

🌟 Edward Elisio (not pictured) - Always willing to share his expertise with new volunteers, Ed received our Helping Hand award for FY25. He frequently takes new team members on ride-alongs so they can see a full hospital delivery in action.

🌟 Mike Long - A relatively new volunteer, Mike was named FY25's Rising Star for stepping up to deliver blood to Jersey Shore hospitals 5 times during busy summer weekends.

🌟 Dave and Paula Tansey - This husband-wife duo was named our Exceptional Biomedical Transport Volunteers for FY25. They handle a wide range of routes and pickups every week, ensuring blood is delivered safely and efficiently.

Below, Mike, Dave and Paula are pictured with Red Cross SEPA CEO Jennifer Graham (second from right), Delaware Valley Chapter Board Member John Susanin (far left) and Philadelphia Chapter Board Member Kenneth Wong (far right).

📷: Donn Greenberg

04/24/2026

WOW! Our very own Dr. Anani is featured as an AABB Lab All-Star! 🌠

Celebrating our Lab All-Stars this Medical Laboratory Professionals Week ⭐

Waseem Anani, MD, SBB(ASCP)CM, brings a rare combination of expertise to transfusion medicine, as a physician, SBB and assay developer, and translates it into meaningful impact across laboratory services and patient care.

As regional medical director at the American Red Cross Blood Donors in Philadelphia, he leads with a hands-on approach, working alongside laboratory teams to solve complex serologic challenges, optimize testing strategies and strengthen workflows.

Known by his colleagues for bridging clinical insight with technical expertise, Dr. Anani helps turn complex immunohematology into clear, actionable guidance, supporting both laboratory professionals and the patients they serve.

Through his leadership, innovation and commitment to education, he is helping advance the field and build stronger, more confident teams.

Dr. Anani: Thank you for everything you do. We’re proud to recognize you as an AABB Lab All-Star.

04/24/2026

- Many of our volunteer superstars work with more than one line of service or department. That's a case with John Finnegan, who was recognized TWICE earlier this month as an Exceptional Volunteer for FY25 by both Financial Development and Volunteer Services.

As Regional Engagement Lead for Volunteer Services, he works closely with department and division leaders to strengthen engagement, align efforts with the Red Cross mission, help identify emerging trends and support volunteer retention.

John also joined the Financial Development team over a year ago and has personally thanked over 250 Red Cross donors through calls, handwritten notes and regional thank-a-thons.

Below, John is pictured (second from left) with Red Cross SEPA CEO Jennifer Graham (second from right), Delaware Valley Chapter Board Member John Susanin (far left) and Philadelphia Chapter Board Member Kenneth Wong (far right).

Thank you for your committed service to our mission, John ❤️.

📷: Donn Greenberg

04/24/2026

Your donation can brighten someone’s toughest day. Come to give blood or platelets April 13-30 and receive a $15 e‑gift card to a merchant of your choice as our thanks. Schedule your appointment: https://rcblood.org/4qqqWZ6