American Red Cross holds Day of Giving for disaster relief fund

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The American Red Cross is holding a Day of Giving Tuesday to help victims of disasters around the country.

The fundraiser supports the American Red Cross's Disaster Relief fund, which is used to help people affected by natural disasters like tornadoes, hurricanes and flooding, wildfires, earthquakes and winter storms.

But the Red Cross doesn't just help victims of large-scale natural disasters; they also respond to small-scale disasters like house fires, ensuring people can have clean water, safe shelter and hot meals.

ABC7 Eyewitness News will be speaking to Illinois Red Cross CEO Celena Roldán and Illinois Red Cross Communications Manager Holly Baker, who just returned from Kentucky, about the disaster relief work done by the organization and how they support communities and families in need.

The American Red Cross is holding a Day of Giving Tuesday for their Disaster Relief Fund which helps victims of disasters around the country.

Illinois Red Cross CEO Celena Roldán spoke with ABC7 about the work the Red Cross's Disaster Relief fund does and why every dollar donated goes far.

You can help people affected by disasters by making a gift to American Red Cross Disaster Relief. Donations can be made by visiting redcross.org/abc or by calling 1-800-RED-CROSS.

The Red Cross uses these donations to help prepare for disaster response in advance so they can respond to crises, major and minor, when they happen and help people recover quickly.

We are also less than a month away from the Great Chicago Blood Drive, and this year the need is great. Click here for more information on how to sign up to donate blood for the blood drive on January 12 and 13, donation locations, and more.