07/10/06 — Red Cross to combine 2 chapters

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Red Cross to combine 2 chapters

By Andrew Bell
Published in News on July 10, 2006 1:50 PM

The Wayne County Red Cross chapter will consolidate with the Wilson chapter later this year, a Red Cross official said.

Wayne Red Cross executive director Chuck Waller said both chapters are in the process of merging, which is expected to go into effect on Oct. 1.

"We're going to join forces with the Wilson-Greene chapters. Mostly, we're going to consolidate the back-office functions to better stretch the donor's dollar," Waller said.

The merger won't have an effect on blood donations for either chapter, but Waller said the move should allow both branches to run more efficiently.

"We've looked at it for a while. It makes sense with smaller chapters and smaller budgets to combine our efforts to improve service delivery," Waller said.

The merger will consolidate both chapters' bookkeeping, payroll, personnel policies, audits and any other back-office functions. As the two groups come together, Waller said the change is also an opportunity for each chapter to share ideas, which could help each run smoother.

"If there is something that they do well, we could try it here. And if there is something we do well, we'll suggest it to them," Waller said.

Both chapters will remain in their current locations, and both communities will continue to fund its own branch, Waller said. He said there will be no personnel cuts.

To learn more about the Wayne County Red Cross, call 735-7201 or send an e-mail to wccarc@bellsouth.com.