Through educating people on how to stop the transmission of HIV, encouraging people to respond in informed ways to people who have HIV, and helping people apply the facts about HIV to their own behavior, the American Red Cross Public Health Education Division (PHE) helps save more lives by developing, evaluating, implementing and supporting innovative prevention programs that are easy to use and designed to reach a variety of audiences. They are based on the latest evidence of what makes health education programs effective.

What do ‘car donation, vehicle donation, auto donation, donate my car to charity and donate a car’ have in common with HIV/AIDS? Without the former there could be more of the latter. In other words no funds, no programs. Stark and simple.

AIDS is a leading cause of death among Americans aged 25 to 44. By learning the facts about HIV (the virus that causes AIDS) and acting on them, we can protect ourselves and others.

The Basic HIV/AIDS Program uses a variety of learning techniques in sessions specially designed for your community to help people: the fundamentals program delivers facts-based discussion to reinforce information about HIV transmission and prevention, dispel myths about HIV and AIDS, and help participants learn from their own experiences and those of others. Activities encourage people to apply the facts to their own behaviors. The prevention skills program gives practice on how to refuse invitations to have sex or use drugs. Role play can also equip them with ways to talk about using condoms before the situation arises.

Not only are these programs avalable but there is supporting material you might want either for personal reference or as a manual for answering many questions that your children or co-workers might have about HIV/AIDS once you have entered into discussion with them. There is an HIV/AIDS fact book and Reasons to Care: The Many Faces of HIV video uses a documentary style to show people living with HIV infection and the American Red Cross HIV/AIDS Education Folder features artwork representing the four American Red Cross HIV/AIDS programs: Basic, African American, Hispanic and Workplace.

One of the most remarkable services that the Red Cross provides to the community is its training in first aid, CPR and AED (Automated External Defibrillator). Volunteers, vehicle donations and auto donations make this service viable. If we face disaster or injury, trained first-aiders will always be required to assess individuals for prioritizing medical response, treating minor wounds and dealing with shock. Knowing that an ARC trained first-aider is on the scene immediately offers reassurance to those who may suddenly find themselves, homeless, helpless and suffering from injuries sustained in escape from fires, building evacuation, traffic incidents or workplace accidents. Any event or incident needs to have a competent first-aider to calm the situation and help restore normality.

Workplaces would be in peril if they didn’t have the personnel trained by the Red Cross to ensure workers’ safety – it’s a standard we can trust. The history of the ARC is embedded in caring for the wounded on the battlefield and nursing in military field camps so it’s no surprise there’s such expertise in their ranks. It’s not just disasters or wars that warrant first-aid training; it’s a useful skill for anyone, just think of how many accidents happen in the home each year that a competent first-aider could deal with effectively. Just as you might think about donating your car, say, you might take up a course to train as a first-aider. Every family should have one!

People trained by the Red Cross are so appreciative of their skills they don’t restrict their first-aid to professional purposes but are willing volunteers when a call is put out for response to an event. Events are where these people are in their element and events cost money. Where does the money come from? It comes from the public generous enough to do things like donate a car to charity or individuals who make a bequest. Wherever money comes from it is put to good use in a variety of services the Red Cross provides. A car donation could provide the sponsorship for a first-aider to be fully trained and how good would that be?

Recently, I was asked to write an article about the programs offered by the American Red Cross. Unfortunately copy word-count limitations meant I was unable to mention all the fantastic programs. I felt it was important to write about the more well known programs that are familiar to people. Re-reading the article, I realized that I still had to give mention to the lesser-known but equally important programs that impact on the everyday lives of citizens all over the country and delivered by the 700 or so Chapters across the nation. Having learned my lesson of lack of copy space I am hereafter going to abandon all efforts at flowing prose and just let the list loose with a quick mention of car donation too.

The Red Cross Advantage when taking up their programs: convenience, cost-effective training, consistency nationwide, complete emergency preparedness, courses developed by experts, certified instructors, participant certification, relief from record-keeping burden, Spanish-language courses.

First Aid, CPR and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Courses.

Caregiving and Babysitting. (American Red Cross caregiving programs help people develop the skills and knowledge to care for themselves and others).

The Masters of Disaster® series - an educational tool that will teach youth the importance of preparedness while reducing fear of the unexpected. The goal is to empower youth with the confidence and knowledge to prepare for disasters and help create a culture of preparedness.

African American HIV/AIDS Program, Basic HIV/AIDS Program, Hispanic HIV/AIDS Program, Workplace HIV/AIDS Program, HIV/AIDS Programs for Youth.

Swimming: Nearly 2 million people learn to swim each year with American Red Cross programs. Lifeguarding: The American Red Cross trains more than 170,000 lifeguards each year.

Of course, there are programs and workshops organized by local Chapters to meet the particular needs of their communities and the fact they are run means they are needed and serve a worthwhile purpose.

Fundraising programs like the now established donate a car to charity program, that accepts auto donation, car donation, vehicle donation all under the same umbrella is one of the excellent ways to provide the revenue needed for the community programs.