NU Online News Service, March 31, 3:27 p.m. EDT
Farmers Insurance Group of Companies said it will partner with the American Red Cross to help train company workers as emergency volunteers who can assist during disasters.
Farmers also announced it had presented the American Red Cross with a $310,000 check consisting of donations to aid the survivors of the Haiti earthquake.
The partnership, called "Ready When the Time Comes," involves partnership companies reaching out to their employees to become American Red Cross volunteers during local and large-scale disasters, according to Doris Dunn, director of community relations at Farmers.
The employees get trained by local American Red Cross chapters and work with Red Cross employees during a disaster.
Ms. Dunn said the program recently expanded into Los Angeles, and Farmers stepped up to become a lead sponsor.
Farmers, she noted, is already involved in disaster response, helping policyholders in a disaster but also providing Internet access, food and water to non-policyholders.
Many employees, she said, want to volunteer during a disaster, and now those not utilized by Farmers can act as American Red Cross volunteers.
Farmers paid $50,000 to become a lead sponsor, part of the $310,000 it donated to the American Red Cross.
The balance of the donation, Ms. Dunn said, came from a $25,000 corporate donation for Haiti earthquake relief, $105,000 in donations from employees and agents, and matching funds from Farmers' parent company, Zurich Financial Services.
© Arc, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to TMSalesOperations@arc-network.com. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.