Dear editor, The American Red Cross has seemed to me like a foundation of American giving, from my fifth grade reading about its founder — civil War nurse Clara Barton — to high school enrollment in Red Cross lifesaving and first aid classes. In looking for volunteer work this past year, the Red Cross seemed like the perfect place to start.

I am proud to be a member of the board of directors of the Napa-Silverado Chapter of the American Red Cross. Under the direction of Executive Director Marj Dixon, this organization has “been there” in times of need for the members of our community affected by crises. It has also served as a conduit for response to national and international disasters. For example, channeling donated funds to areas such as New Orleans after Katrina or Kashmir after earthquakes.

In addition to offering community classes and training volunteers, our local Red Cross has mobilized volunteers and deployed them to sites such as southern California last summer and Nevada in the fall. Our chapter of ARC has seemed like an unsung hero to me though, since much of their work has been done “behind the scenes.”

You can imagine my delight then, to return from a week’s vacation to see a front-page article on the March 7 issue of the Register (“New leader at local Red Cross chapter”). Kudos and thanks to staff writer Natalie Hoffman for an outstanding description of the legacy of retiring Red Cross Director Marj Dixon. The article noted that Register Staff Writer Marsha Dorgan and Calistogan Staff Writer Jesse Duarte contributed to this article — thanks to them also. It’s exciting to see the media give justly deserved recognition to Marj and spotlight the newly-appointed director, Frank Lucier. Thank you Napa Valley Register for deciding to print this story and for giving it front-page prominence.

Frances Williams Houser / Napa