Canadian Red Cross Region of York Branch celebrates 115th anniversary

On December 31, 2015 the Canadian Red Cross Region of York Branch will celebrate its 115th anniversary!  In the past 115 years, this branch has actively supported the Red Cross mission in the community and around the world. Ontario Provincial Disaster Coordination Team HR volunteer Beverly Verwey took a moment to tell us a little about her Branch’s history.

The Region of York Branch is an amalgamation of several branches and chapters that were located throughout the Municipality of York Region, including Aurora, Richmond Hill, Woodbridge and Newmarket. The Newmarket Chapter holds one of the oldest charters in Canada, signed on December 31, 1900 by George Sterling Ryerson.

The types of services delivered by the Canadian Red Cross changed quite a lot in those 115 years.
 During the First and Second World Wars many community members became actively involved in order to help the war effort. During WWI, the Ladies of the Red Cross Newmarket created a recipe book that they sold locally, and used the proceeds to purchase an ambulance that was sent to France. According to Beverly, a copy of the recipe book in the Branch archive shows evidence of being “well used, worn and covered in food stains.” The first page shows a picture of the ambulance.



Other war effort projects included sending care packages to soldiers in Europe as well as delivering food to families in England following WWII.

The Region of York branches and chapters stayed active in peace time both locally and internationally, such as assisting those impacted by Hurricane Hazel in 1954, and preparing volunteers to support Operation Parasol in 1999.

When asked about the impact she feels the Branch has had through the years, Beverly tells us, “Over the past 115 years, the Region of York Branch has brought together a lot of people who are kind, caring and dedicated to the work of the Red Cross. These volunteers have served the community by supporting, educating and training during wartime, peacetime and disasters. The challenges have been different with each decade, but the organization has always been there through its volunteers. It has been a privilege to be a part of this history.” 

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