Evening star., 1953-06-21
Red Cross Volunteers Meet New Needs

The women pass among thu
men as soon as they land. giving
cigarettes, sandwiches, q hot
drink-and what comfort they
can-to the wounded. Their jot
has no hours. When q plane
rolls in, they are expected.
| Many have been the wives o1
men fighting In Korea. Theil
stake particularly Is real, an6
more than q little grim. They
never know when the plane they
meet might be carrying Q
husband.
This program. one Of the
many Red Cross services linked
directly to the Korean fighting
is part Of the reason Mrs. Robert
Whitelaw Wilson is so confident
about the future of Red Cross
trained volunteer workers.
t Back From Inspection Trip.
Mrs. Wilson, a Washington
resident and national director
of the 305, 900 trained volunteers
here and overseas, recently re-
| turned from an inspection trip
to the Far East.
She will report formally on
the trip in an address Wednes-
day night as a highlight Of the
Red Cross convention here. In
an interview. she told a reporter
about the magnificent re-
| sponse" to the Korean crisis.
| For Mrs. Wilson, the trip was
the completioh of an education
about work OF the trained vol
unteers at installations through
out the, world. A year ago, as
deputy chief Of the volunteers,
she saw programs In behalf OF
American servicemen in Europe.
Basically, Jobs being done
throughout the worldly Gray
Ladies, canteen workers, stan
aides, nurses aides, motor corps.
blood program workers-are the
same.
But Mrs. Wilson found the
work in Europe. where there Is
no fighting, for example. far
different from what she saw in
the Orient. I'm each case" she
explained, "the volunteers re-
spond, and improvise when they
have to. to meet the particular
demands"
New Programs Developed.
The response in Japan was
simultaneous with the outbreak
Of war. As occupation troops
were shipped to Korea, there de-
pendents and those Of Govern
ment and diplomatic service en-
ployes went TO work. A blood
program was one of the first
jobs. Another of the earliest,
and saddest, Mrs. Wilson said,
was assistance given families Of
war dead. ..,r
Not all the programs are grim.
and not all fit any pattern OF
past experience.
AS marriages between Ameri-
can servicemen and u japanese
girls increased, the idea Of a
Japanese War Brides School was
brought up. "The military asked
the Red Cross to work out a
course for the girls" Mrs. Wilson
said.
"There are about six sessions.
The idea is to teach the girls
about differences in customs,
religion, education. Most Of it
Is pretty practical. Some Of the
most interesting discussions cen
ter around clothes, and how to
entertain and keep house. Baby
care Is covered. too.
when I was in Japan, the
courses still had waiting lists"
Service Often Misunderstood.
Mrs. Wilson left for the trip
in March. Her stops included
Korea, Wake Island and Hawaii,
where a tremendous volunteer
program Is centered around the
Army's Tripler General Hospital.
The tall, attractive wife of a
Potomac Electric Power Co. ex-
ecutive, Mrs. Wilson has made
Red Cross work q major part Of
her life for the last decade. She
became interested through the
Junior League Of Washington,
which she headed from 1912 to
1914.
Working through the District
Red Cross chapter for several
years, she became a consultant
to the national staff on volun-
teer services after the war. She
served for two years as deputy
chief and was named national
director last September.
The service she heads, often
misunderstood, covers workers
who are trained for specific Red
Cross services and who agree to
contribute definite periods Of
time to Red Cross work. Not in
cluded are the hundreds Of thou
sands Of other citizens who serve
as chapter board members, on
funds drives and in other ca
pacities.
Work Started in 1918.
The trained volunteer move
ment got its start in 1918 at
Walter Reed Hospital, with fore
runners Of the present Gray
Ladies. It's moving spirit during
the years was another prominent
Washingtonian, the late Mabel
Boardman.
A big part Of Mrs. Wilson'S
job, she said, Is to help merge
the volunteer program smoothly
with programs Of paid Red Cross
workers. Her Office recommends
standards and policies for local
chapter volunteers to follow. The
program Is tied closely with
those Of other groups and Fed
eral agencies, such as the Civil
Defense Administration.
Mrs. Wilson has had q, hand in
developing programs for volun-
teers in mental hospital. an idea