Community Awareness

Kennett High School Principal Ed Siebenhuener, left, talks with members of the American Red Cross, including, from left, Tara Phillips, Robert Wake, Julie Koehler, and Rick Samples, prior to an assembly at the high school on Thursday morning.

Staff photo by George Anderson

Members of the American Red Cross visited the Kennett High School on Thursday morning to present a Community Awareness assembly to the students in an effort to show them what services are provided by the organization.

As the assembly kicked off, Principal Ed Siebenhuener gave a brief introduction to the presentation.

"We are here for the American Red Cross," Siebenhuener said. "The American Red Cross is a very powerful organization. When most people think about the American Red Cross, [what they think about] is a blood drive. But the American Red Cross does a lot of things and that is why they are here. They are here to tell you about all the things they do.

"It is a wonderful organization and I think it is important that they come here and they tell you about what they do."

Representatives of the American Red Cross, including Rick Samples, disaster action team volunteer; Jamie Koehler, emergency services director; Robert Wake, service to the armed forces volunteer; and Tara Phillips, donor recruitment representative, then took turns telling about the different branches of the organization.

According to Samples, a local volunteer, the presentation went well.

"We did an overview of everything," Samples said. "We wanted to get the kids involved in the Red Cross and show them how the community is involved."

Samples said the presentation was also geared to increase student involvement.

"[Yesterday] was more of a community awareness program," Samples said. "We were pushing the kids to volunteer to help. The students and faculty at Kennett have always been real good with helping with community Red Cross events."

Siebenhuener also said he thought the event went well.

"I thought the kids were very attentive," Siebenhuener said.

"I thought they learned a lot. I enjoyed the presentation. Each Red Cross member represented a different branch and they discussed what they branch does. I thought it was done well. They were really pursuing volunteerism here in the home town."

Siebenhuener said the program ended with a standing ovation for Red Cross member Robert Wake, a former Army soldier who was wounded in active duty during the Gulf War.