Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1918-11-21
annual MEETING OF GARDINER
RED CROSS CHAPTER HELD At
LIBRARY HALL, WEDNESDAY EVE,

| LIBRARY HALL,
Evidently the rainy evening Wednes.
day deferred considerable number
| from attending the annual meeting Of
the Gardiner Red Cross chapter at L.
brary hall. During the session severa.
selections were rendered by the High
| School orchestra. Miss Helen Wood,
! secretary, reported that there are y765
| members OF the Gardiner chapter Low
enrolled. Her report was a resume Of
the work of the chapter during the past
year.
| The report of J. Walter Robinson
covered period of 16 months. 1t SHOW
| ed that $17.27224 had been collected DUR
| ing that time. OF this sum there re-
! manned on hand Oct. 81 the sum Of
$3024.04, with s67204 still due from
| branches for war work supplies
There are 1913 annual members. IS
, magazine and l contributing member,
making a total of 1882. This includes
| the Gardiner chapter and it's SIX
. branches. During the past 1s months
there have been $2O345 expended in tu-
berculosis work. Loans and payments
to soldiers families have been made as
! follows, per order Of the home service
| committee: For the four months end
! ing Oct. 81, s242; and for November. end
ing Nov. 16. $l3O,35: making a total OF
1886. The above covers cash loans to
soldiers families and burial expense .or
| two persons
| The reports of the various activitit 8
of the chapter were filed with things of
interest. For lack of space these must
be largely omitted. The address of
Chairman Mrs. Gray in welcome to all
in behalf of the Gardiner Red Cross
chapter and its branches was a pleasing
review, and an adroit chapter of praise
for her coworke-s. She said the lie.
| Spouse on all sides had been splendid,
She said all the work on the part Of ev-
erycne has been entirely through a spirit
| of patriotism. With one exception 70
one working in and for the Gardiner Red
Cross chapter and its branches has been
paid for any services rendered The one
exception is the necessity of having
someone to do some of the clerical work
/ and for nine months, beginning Nov Il,
"a paid worker was employed for two
| mornings, a week for our chapters ard
| since September the work has been such
as to require all of the time of aign
school graduate as stenographer and
typewriter
No one refuses anything the FED
! Cross asks of them. Our chapter mas
met with nothing but ready and imme-
date response from the community at
large. l cannot dwell too long upon my
! appreciation of the splendid spirit shown
by our city and the surrounding country
over which the Gardiner chapter has the
| Jurisdiction"
| Especially interesting was the report
, of Ernest L. Goodspeed, chairman OF
the home service division. He said the
, chapters interest in the family begiis
on the Gay when one of its members en-
lists in his country's service, and once
begun il never ceases. The soldier is
invited to call and when he does so IS
| advised regarding his allotment rights
and the advantages of government in
surance. When he leaves the home SER
vice visitor in the district in which the
family resides is Immediately notified
and without delay calls at the home 70
render such aid as is necessary.
over 400 boys from families within the
jurisdiction of our chapter have entered
our country's service, some of whcm
Will never return to us. During the asst
year we have dealt with families of en-
listed men on 563 occasions We have
rendered special services to these fami-
lies on 2S7 occasions, the other ZIG case,
being those where information only vas
given. We have given financial assist
ance amounting to s312,13. OF course in
many instances we have dealt with the
same family on more than one occasion.
so that the total number of different
FAMILIES visited would be somewhat less
than the figures given here. The need
for home service is best shown by the
number of families daily calling on US
| FOR advice and assistance The respon.
sibiilties resting upon us are increa sing
every day, and we shall endeavor to
meet them with renewed zeal and all the
resources at our command.
with the ending of the war the
nature Of our work will change. In
stead OF giving advice and assistance
to men enlisting in their country's
service. we shall be called upon to
deal with our disabled soldiers and
sailors. We shall endeavor to bring
behind the disabled man at all
| stages Of the reconstruction the NOR
al support Of his family, remember
t ing that he is at this time Just as
much in the service Of his country as
| when at the front"
+! Miss Annie T. Bailey, head Of the
surgical dressings department., has
been an exceedingly busy woman as
the following report shows:
From the small beginning made in
November, 1915. the work on surgical
dressings has grown into a large or
ganizaztion of over 200 registered
members. In March. 1918, a confer
ence was held in Boston for the pur-
pose Of getting the chapters together
| and outlining the work undertaken
by the Red Cross in cooperation
with tho government. We were told
that VIC would get definite orders
from the government for making
dressing for the. U. S. army and
that the first aid packets which were
to be our first government order
were as much part OF the soldiers
equipment as the other supplies sent