The national days of the French Red Cross take place until May 22. Adriana Karembeu, ambassador of the humanitarian association for 23 years, came to launch them in Dijon this Saturday, May 14, alongside national president Philippe Da Costa.
Few people have ever heard of Red Cross collection days. In any case, we all more or less saw volunteers from the association begging, equipped with their piggy banks and their stickers with the effigy of the French Red Cross. But when it’s Adriana Karembeu, ambassador of the association for 23 years, who leads the quest, it inevitably has its effect.
After having launched them in Paris with the novelist Marc Lévy in the morning, Adriana Karembeu went to conclude the launch of the national days of the Red Cross in Dijon.
“It’s her !”
This Saturday, May 14, 2022, it was only necessary to walk a few meters on Place Darcy then at the entrance to Rue de la Liberté to see that generosity was boosted by his coming. The donations were followed by selfies and other photos with the model, also an actress and host, but it was well dressed in a Red Cross polo shirt, welcoming to potential donors, that the ambassador strolled to the Liberation Square. “But does it look like Adriana? It’s her!”, we could hear going down the street.
Nice moments, or even symbolic, the ambassador of the Red Cross received a donation from a volunteer of the League against cancer. A little further on, a whole group gathered around a future bride who posed after slipping several coins into the piggy bank.
Adriana Karembeu was able to measure how much the Dijonnais are “welcoming and generous”. By specifying: “It’s great, I’m happy. This money will stay here for local actions, local actions. It’s always important to make people aware of that.”
“Each euro donated comes to finance the action of the local units”
Philippe Da Costa, the national president of the French Red Cross, was also present in Dijon for the launch of the association’s national days. It is also on Place Darcy that the procession of volunteer collectors and the ambassador met to close the event. A place on which a device of stands and animations was set up for the first time, the same which was declined simultaneously this May 14 in Paris, Nice and Rennes.
A good spotlight was thus given to the association on the Darcy square in Dijon, sunny and not lacking in volunteers to explain the actions carried out throughout the year. In the presence in particular of Danyl Afsoud, chief of staff to the prefect of Côte-d’Or, and several elected officials including Antoine Hoareau, deputy mayor of the city of Dijon in charge of solidarity, and François-Xavier Dugourd, vice-president of the departmental council of the Côte-d’Or, it is precisely to the volunteers that Philippe Da Costa sent deep thanks, they who will be mobilized for the quest until May 22.
“Each euro donated by the French men and women comes to finance the action of the local units of the Red Cross, in emergencies, in first aid, in food distribution, in hygiene kits, in training. The French know the Red Cross through concrete actions which are useful to them when they need it”, underlined Philippe Da Costa. An implicit way of still saluting the voluntary commitment as well as the local teams.
In Dijon and more broadly in Côte-d’Or, we will find these volunteer collectors in shopping centers, at the exit of shops, in public spaces. In the department, the quest had brought in around 14,000 euros in 2021, including 7,000 euros in Dijon.
“We hope for a little more this year. The interest is obviously not to win for the sake of winning. The idea is to invest in equipment and develop our activities. Last year, we were able to equip a coffee truck to go directly to meet people in difficulty in different municipalities, with the possibility of various aid, from food to administrative but also psychological support. reminded Christophe Talmet, departmental president of the French Red Cross in Côte-d’Or, announcing that one of the projects this year is to expand the vesti-shops into reception lounges which would combine individualized support for people in difficulty and participatory workshops. Without forgetting the first aid missions for which it is planned to invest in a new rescue vehicle for victims.
The call for donations and commitment
While the French Red Cross is committed internationally because of the context we know, the association also relies on a strong image, that of helping the most vulnerable in the heart of the territories. The benefits of these national days are oriented towards local actions.
If you do not come across any volunteer collectors, it is possible to donate online at www.croix-rouge.fr, by SMS by sending DON21C to 92200 (donation of 5 euros), or by buying a booklet of stamps illustrated with samples of wool at La Poste (out of the 13.60 euros of the purchase, 2 euros will be donated to the Croix- Red).
“There are 66,000 volunteers in France and we still need them. Once you are a volunteer, you remain one for life. Everyone is welcome to join this magnificent family”, launched Adriana Karembeu to call for commitment at the same time as for donations.
Alix Berthier
Photos: Alix Berthier
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