National Volunteer Week is April 12-18 and the American Red Cross Bluegrass Chapter is honoring its volunteers who give their time to help people in need.

Across the United States, hundreds of thousands of volunteers are part of the Red Cross. They respond to fires, teach life saving skills like First Aid and CPR, volunteer at Veterans Hospitals, and so much more. Here in the Bluegrass Chapter, more than 1,220 volunteers gave over 25,200 hours of service last year to help the community.

“We want to take this time during Volunteer Week to thank our volunteers for their service,” said Terry Burkhart, Bluegrass Chapter CEO. “They help us fulfill our life saving mission every day, and we are overwhelmed with gratitude for their service.”

Last year, Red Cross Bluegrass Chapter volunteers provided food, shelter, comfort and hope to 660 local families who faced emergency situations. They trained 12,518 people in life saving skills and provided 2,048 services to military members, veterans, and their families.

The Red Cross invites members of the community to sign up today and become a Red Cross volunteer. There are many ways people can get involved. Go to redcross.org to learn more about volunteer opportunities and how to submit a volunteer application.

The Red Cross Home Fire Preparedness Campaign offers another way to volunteer to help reduce the number of home fire injuries and deaths in the area. Volunteers are going door-to-door in neighborhoods at high risk for fires to install smoke alarms and teach people about home fire safety.

People who might want to volunteer during a disaster should download the Team Red Cross app. This free app allows people to sign up to help, get an overview on basic tasks, and receive notifications about local Red Cross volunteer opportunities.