Posted on September 11, 2012

American Red Cross Receives $1 Million for Disaster Training, Preparedness Efforts

The American Red Cross has announced a $1 million grant from the Community Safety Foundation, a private nonprofit funded by the AAA Northern California, Nevada, and Utah Insurance Exchange, a provider of AAA-branded insurance.

Made in in celebration of National Preparedness Month, the grant will be used to fund disaster training and preparedness efforts across the United States. The foundation also awarded $1 million to the Red Cross in June.

Established in June to improve the safety and security of the communities served by the AAA Insurance Exchange in twenty-three states and the District of Columbia, CSF also has joined the Red Cross's Annual Disaster Giving Program. In addition, during the month of September the insurance company will provide basic CPR and preparedness training to its thirty-four hundred employees nationwide; that effort is funded by a separate gift made directly to the Red Cross.

"This generous donation will help the Red Cross keep thousands of people in communities safer by providing free disaster preparedness in all the regions where the insurance company has employees," said Jerry DeFrancisco, president of humanitarian services at the Red Cross. "The $2 million in donations in just three months shows the importance that the Community Safety Foundation is placing on disaster preparedness."