“I’ve been knitting trauma teddies for nearly 20 years now. I started doing it to pay back Red Cross for what they did for my husband when he was captured in Italy during the war. There are so many people that Red Cross is looking after, from babies onwards. It’s just so worthwhile to support them. I can’t say it enough times!”
Cora, Red Cross volunteer and client.
Australian Red Cross/Gemma Pitcher
Members are the friendly, active face of Red Cross in local and social communities throughout Australia. They advocate for us in their networks, volunteer in local communities, raise money to support our work and drive local events. That is why we call our members ‘champions of humanity’.
We now have 20,555 members – an increase from last year of 3.2% and the second year in a row that we’ve seen growing numbers. While the majority of members belong to branches that meet regularly and take a variety of local actions, the proportion of independent and youth members is growing. We recognise that young people are the future of our movement, and this year 41% of all new members were young humanitarians.
We regularly update members on our work and invite them to get involved through monthly email updates and a magazine, published in print and online three times per year. A new membership proposition now being rolled out will guide a fresh strategic approach to attracting, engaging and retaining members into the future. This includes strengthening our focus on young people and offering a clearer vision of what it means to be a champion of humanity.
