MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- In 1859, Henry Dunant came upon the aftermath of a bloody battle in Solferino, Italy, between the armies of imperial Austria and the Franco-Saridini alliance. At this battle, Dunant witnessed some 40,000 men lying dead or wounded.
The young Swiss man noticed none of the wounded men were receiving medical attention. So he organized the locals to bind the soldiers' wounds and feed and comfort them.
Upon his return home, Dunant called for the creation of national relief societies to assist those wounded in war and paved the way for the future Geneva Convention. Some four years later, the first Red Cross establishment was born.
Today's American Red Cross has evolved into a humanitarian organization that provides disaster victims with relief and also teaches people how to prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies.
This organization would not be capable of doing such things without the aid of volunteers.
"The backbone of the Red Cross is volunteers. Without them we can't provide the services to the community like we do," said Brandy Fuesting, Station Red Cross field office coordinator. "Here at Iwakuni we are looking for residents to volunteer their time to help those in need."
According to Lynne Hammond, Station Red Cross manager, the Station's Red Cross has a variety of jobs available to those who are interested.
"We don't want people to think that if they volunteer they end up doing a job they don't like," stated Hammond.
Besides the simple reward of helping those in need, Fuesting said volunteers can greatly benefit by giving their time to the Station Red Cross.
"After a service member volunteers for 300 hours, they receive a volunteer medal as well as having their efforts documented in their permanent record. High school students can also volunteer, and it looks great on scholarship and college applications," said Fuesting.
Spouses are also welcome, and Fuesting and her staff have made arrangements to provide eight hours a week of day care for the children of volunteers.
"We need people to volunteer, and we understand people have restraints in their life that prevent them from doing things, but without volunteers there is no Red Cross," she added.