Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1917-09-06
JUNIOR RED CROSS
OPEN TO SCHOOL CHILDREN
New Organization Hopes To Become
Channel For Patriotic
Service


Red Cross War Council. announces
the launching of Junior Red Cross
omen 10 all school children in the
country. The new organization hopes
TO become a channel for patriotic
service and interest TO the 22,00O,000
boys and girls Of school age in the
United States.
Membership IN the Junior Red
Cross is 10 be by schools. Whenever
there has been placed in the local
school fund an amount equal tc %
cents for every pupil. the school be-
comes q school auxiliary of the Red
Cross. and is entitled 10 display
special Red Cross banner. AT the
same time every pupil becomes
Junior Member. and IS entitled 10
wear the membership button
The school fund can be raised by
the school. or collected by subscrip-
ton. In some States it will be raised
bv cities to cover all schools in the
city districts In other States the
campaign will be for Statewide
| fund and the enrolment OF all the
pupils in the State. In every case,
however the schools are TO be asso-
ciated with the local chapters OF the
| Red Cross through a teachers com
mittee of the chapter.
The school fund viii be used for
| the purchase of materials which the
| children viii make up into Red Cross
supplies, and for other uses in which
| the children will have a personal
| share. No part OF it is TO go for
chapter or general expenses.
4 Membership in the Junior Red
| Cross will be developed by States.
Division managers will appoint mem
1 bership committees and school ac-
/ tivities committees for each State.
The membership committee stimu-
i lates interest and raises funds for the
school supply fund. 1t viii be COM
i posed of some of the most influential
i people devoted to educational affairs
/ The school activities committee
will be made up of vocational teach
ers and other school officials. I'm
der its direction patterns of articles
to be made. and other instructions
for use in the vocational classrooms
will be prepared and sent to all the
schools.
The plan has been developed by
President MacCracken. of Vassar, III
consultation with school authorities
land the National Red Cross. DR.
4 MacCracken said:
ii II believe in the Junior Red Cross
not only because of the great sums
of money it will earn and the i'm
mense amount of supplies which the
school pupils, especially in oul
technical schools will make, but be
cause of its educational and patri-
otic value for the children,
i "The work for the Red Cross viii
teach service for others and unset
4 fish giving; it will stimulate interes
in our national government and its
1 policies during the war; and it vii
afford a useful release for the youth
full energy which is stimulated by the
i violent and morbid aspects of wal
L conditions, and If undirected, may
| cause under wrong conditions grea
/ Increase of juvenile delinquency anC
crime
"It is the success attained in manl
l. schools last year which has decided
the Red Cross to undertake this i'm
portant new step. The vocationa
classes in New York State alone las
spring made over 10000 articles dur
ing the last few weeks of the schoo
y war for tho Pod Cross
universal testimony from The
chapters showed that these were il
| every way up TO the rigid standards
of the organization Mrs. Talbot, di
rector of vocational education fol
.girls in the State, says that in many
cases she was told that their work
was, il anything, better than that in
the adult work"