Yongsan Red Cross honors volunteers at annual ceremony

By Mr. Kenneth Fidler (IMCOM)March 27, 2008

Yongsan Red Cross honors volunteers at annual ceremony
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Yongsan Red Cross honors volunteers at annual ceremony
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YONGSAN GARRISON, Republic of Korea - The American Red Cross Yongsan Station honored its volunteer corps Thursday, announcing the volunteer of the year for 2007 and recognizing volunteers and staff for their service.

Red Cross officials named Catherine Moug as the Volunteer of the Year and presented her with the Service to Armed Forces Award at the ARC's annual volunteer recognition banquet here.

"I am very humbled today to be with so many who give their time to Red Cross. I'm totally surprised," said Moug, whose husband is the Australian defense attachAfA and special liaison to the United Nations Command here. "I have lived these three years believing that I get more out of this than I give."

Gen. B.B. Bell, commander of U.S. Forces Korea and Combined Forces Command, the event's guest speaker, said volunteers "stand head and shoulders above the crowd because you not only feel the need to help, you do something about it." "You are, in my view, making the best expression of the human spirit that any person could make," he added.

For Moug, she put in more than 275 hours last year as a volunteer caseworker, delivering critical emergency messages from families in the United States to Servicemembers here. She also gives the weekly Red Cross orientation briefing at the Yongsan Readiness Center, which inprocesses every Soldier newly assigned to Korea.

"I've always wanted to give back to my community if I had the opportunity," Moug said. "The Red Cross was natural .... I'm giving back to a defense force."

During the ceremony, Dr. Lee Se-ung, President of the Republic of Korea National American Red Cross, and Lawson Hughes, Regional Manager for the American Red Cross Korea, exchanged presentations to signify their strong alliance.

The Yongsan Station has 39 youth and about 130 adult volunteers who put in 20,317 hours last year. That time is worth the equivalent of $345,389, according to Red Cross officials.

"The Red Cross is literally run by volunteers," Hughes said. Some paid staff members provide support, but volunteers provide the largest percentage of direct service.

"It is very critical for us to have volunteers; if we didn't have volunteers, we could not do they type of services that we do on a daily basis," Hughes said.

Following individuals and organizations received awards at the ceremony:

Home Town Hero's Award:

Yongsan Commissary

American Chamber of Commerce

American Forces' Spouses' Club

121st Combat Support Hospital

U.S. Forces Korea J1

U.S. Army Garrison-Yongsan

Volunteer Leadership Award Level II:

Park, Si

Employee Excellence Award for Support Services Level II:

Choe, Won Kyong

Health and Safety Services Award:

Capt. Kang, Sang-guk, ROK Marine Corps

Medical Volunteer Award for Support Services:

Jafanna Tipton

Medical Volunteer Award for Professional/Technical Services:

Park, Ji Hyun

Employee Excellence Award for Technical/Professional:

Jessica C. Shanahan

Employee Excellence Award for Management:

Robert H. Owen Jr.