Red Cross honors its volunteers during annual luncheon

JACKSON, Tenn. — The Red Cross Heroes Luncheon kicks off in the Hub City.

Guests fill the Grant Center on the Union University campus for a day of recognition, honoring a brighter future forward to make a difference.

Honorees this year are Harold Nance, selected for Humanitarian of the Year, Pam Shumate for Volunteer of the Year and Larry Jarnigan for Uniformed Hero of the Year honoree .

“This is the day that we celebrate the volunteers. The volunteers that contribute to the Red Cross. We get corporate donations to sponsor the chapter and that allows the volunteers to go out and do what they need to do. So, this is a day to recognize them,” said Michael Banks, leadership board chair for the Red Cross.

According to Banks, the Heroes Luncheon has been going on for more than 12 years.

From volunteers going out on fire cases and natural disasters, 95% are Red Cross volunteers.

“This helps support 17 counties in West Tennessee. Whenever a family is burned out of a home, we’re there to respond immediately with a hotel room and some cash for them to go out and buy the necessities,” said Banks.

One Red Cross volunteer speaks to us about what it means to be a part of the Red Cross organization.

“We love the mission of the Red Cross assisting others in their darkest times. It is the only association that is mandated by congress to respond to disasters,” said Matthew Shumate, sheltering lead for Red Cross.

The money raised by the Red Cross locally stays in this area, but it also goes to support the broader Red Cross umbrella.

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