kupchurch@heraldsun.com; 419-6612
DURHAM -- Red Cross officials said Friday they will merge the Central North Carolina chapter with the Orange County chapter to improve efficiency and offer better service to citizens.
Starting Jan. 1, the new five-county service area include Durham, Granville, Orange, Person and Vance counties.
The chapter's name will remain the Central North Carolina chapter, and Toby Barfield will continue as executive director.
At a press conference Friday at Blue Cross Blue Shield corporate headquarters on Durham-Chapel Hill Boulevard, Barfield said it didn't make sense to continue operating two chapter offices so close together.
"We've been talking about this off and on for years," he said. "Our two chapter offices are, as the crow flies, 2.1 miles apart. It just doesn't make sense to have two chapters so close. Orange County is a single-county chapter, and single-county chapters are becoming a rarity at the Red Cross."
Barfield said there will be no layoffs, and no buildings will be closed. He said the Central North Carolina Chapter office, at 4737 University Drive in Durham, will continue to serve as its headquarters, with branch offices at 101 Ephesus Church Road in Chapel Hill, at 109 Hillsboro St. in Oxford, at 605 Burlington Road in Roxboro and at 300 S. Garnett St. in Henderson.
He said the change will allow the Red Cross to:
- Expand availability of services and support in rural areas.
- Improve efficiency and coordination.
- Build new opportunities to recruit and retain volunteers.
"The new structure will allow quicker access to resources, particularly in times of disasters," Barfield said. "Our ability to respond as a newly formed chapter now includes 238 disaster volunteers, 24 instructors authorized to teach Red Cross programs, and the capacity to shelter clients on a much larger scale. It will also create more opportunities for donors, volunteers and community partners to become engaged with our local chapter."
Red Cross volunteers in Orange County will continue to provide the same services there as in the past. They also will have the option to volunteer at the Durham headquarters, and Durham volunteers may work occasionally at the Chapel Hill office.
Barbara Baker, board chairwoman of the Central N.C. chapter, and Sharon Schiro, board chairwoman of the Orange County chapter, applauded the change and said it will help the Red Cross to offer better service.
