Berkshire Red Cross Begins Volunteer Instructor Recruitment Campaign
The Berkshire County Chapter of the American Red Cross is launching a campaign to recruit individuals interested in becoming volunteer instructors in adult/infant/child CPR, First Aid, Automated External Defibrillator (AED) and other safety programs for the lay person.
The initial First Aid/CPR/AED Instructor Course for this campaign will be held at the North Adams Holiday Inn in North Adams, MA. It will be held from 6:00 p.m. until 10 p.m. on October 17, 22, 29, November 14, 26, and December 3, 12, 17. The course is open to anyone living or working in Berkshire County who is interested in teaching basic level CPR, First Aid, AED and/or Babysitting Training for the Red Cross; for their place of work; or for another community organization.
The instructor trainer will be Gary Martin, a resident of North Adams and a Pittsfield firefighter. Martin is also a community and workplace first aid, CPR and AED instructor for the chapter.
The cost of the training is $125.00 and includes all instructor materials. As a part of the recruitment campaign, the chapter will refund the full cost of the instructor training to anyone who volunteers to teach 4 community courses for the chapter within a year of completing the instructor course.
While the local chapter has a core group of key volunteers, they are making an effort to reach more people throughout the county. According to Michael P. Murphy, Coordinator of Health & Safety Services for the local chapter, "Reaching people throughout Berkshire County with this kind of safety training can only be accomplished with the help of volunteers. In addition to providing valuable training, volunteers also help to keep the cost of a course as low as possible. Most of our volunteer instructors teach out of the chapter house in Pittsfield. We need to be more aggressive in recruiting volunteers for other parts of Berkshire County especially in the Adams/North Adams and Great Barrington areas."
Additional instructor courses will be scheduled in the coming months. As a part of the campaign the chapter will also target current Red Cross instructors who teach for their place of employment but not as volunteers." We will continue to offer instructor courses for new volunteers in Pittsfield and the north and south county areas. Getting experienced instructors to join our volunteer pool only enhances the quality of the programs." Murphy stated.
"Our goal is for one person in every household to be trained in how to save a life. This cannot be accomplished without an adequate supply of well-trained volunteer instructors teaching at locations throughout the county," he added.
Pre-registration is required and must be completed by October 10, 2001, as enrollment is limited. It can be done at the chapter house which is located at 480 West Street in Pittsfield or by calling (413) 442-1506 or 1-800-332-2030. Regular business hours are 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
|
