History of The Red Cross

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The Heart of Oklahoma Chapter

The Cleveland County Chapter of The American Red Cross began with a meeting on April 3, 1917 in the Franning Opera House. A group of citizens devoted to the war effort met to pledge support to President Wilson, Congress, and to the United States of America. Later, they petitioned for the authority to form a Red Cross Chapter to support the war effort. The Charter for the Cleveland County Chapter of the American Red Cross was granted on May 22, 1917.

In 1998, the Cleveland County Chapter merged with the Garvin County Chapter and additionally annexed the McClain County Service Area. With this merger and annexation, the Heart of Oklahoma Chapter was formed. In July of 2006 the Chapter acquired the Pontotoc County Service Area. The Heart of Oklahoma Chapter continues to serve all four counties with branch offices in Pauls Valley and Ada. The Chapter's service area population now includes over 317,000 people.

In October 1863, The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement was created in Geneva, Switzerland to provide nonpartisan care to the wounded and sick in times of war. The Red Cross emblem was adopted at this first International Conference as a symbol of neutrality and was to be used by national relief societies. The symbol is composed of five equal squares, sometimes referred to as a Greek cross. It was chosen because it is the Swiss flag in reverse and because a red cross on a white background was easily recognized and reproducible on battlefields.

The Geneva Conventions now recognize two emblems currently in use- The Red Cross and The Red Crescent, which is used in most Muslim countries. The Red Shield of David emblem used by Israel, while not in the Geneva Conventions, is also a respected emblem.

The founding of the American Red Cross in 1881 was due to the devotion and dedication of Clara Barton. Today, the organization's actions are guided by its dedication to humanity and a desire to promote mutual understanding, friendship, cooperation and lasting peace among all people.

The International Principles of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies are: humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality.