Gail McGovern--ARC CEO

I had the opportunity to meet Gail McGovern, the National American Red Cross, President and CEO. She came to the ARC five months ago from Harvard where she was teaching a course in marketing. The King-Kitsap County Chapter held a reception for her.

She made some remarks:

-The Red Cross responds to 70,000 disasters a year
-They also respond to 600K service member related calls (having served in the military I know how important their role is in maintaining communications with loved ones who are deployed)
-Their budget for disasters last year was $260M. She called it her baptism by hurricane
-This past year they served eight million meals in one month alone
-They are in the middle of a $100M campaign to raise funds. To date they have hit $62M in contributions/pledges--which is pretty good in the economy we are in.
-She pledged that every dollar given will be accounted for and put to good use
-She noted that the Red Cross has a 75% favorable rating from the general public

Overall--I really liked her. She is a good story teller and that is a needed role for someone leading an organization like hers. Her personal volunteer efforts provided the stories to tell. Having a marketing background doesn't hurt either!

I hope you are also a supporter of your local chapter of the ARC. They are an important part of our disaster preparedness, response and recovery fabric.