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We’re feeling pretty inspired by Team Canada in Rio to practice our swimming - and just because we’re not training to be Olympians doesn’t mean it’s a waste of time training in a pool. When we think of swimming lessons a lot of us immediately think of little kids splashing around – but what about teens and adults who are ready to pick up or improve their water skills?

The Fort McMurray area is home to almost 90,000 people. Each of them has their own experience and story after May’s wildfires tore through the region. That’s why Red Cross case workers continue to meet with families and individuals to talk through their personal needs and find effective ways to assist. Reaching those people means working alongside community groups like the Nistawoyou Association Friendship Centre. The Canadian Red Cross is partnering with the Centre to help connect with aboriginal residents.

There are a lot of excuses the three of us could have used to not wear our lifejackets. After all, we are all confident swimmers;  the water was calm; we weren’t going very far out; we could just throw three lifejackets in the canoe; and we all felt pretty comfortable with our canoe abilities. The thing is, all of these reasons only make sense in a world where nothing goes wrong, and especially nothing goes wrong as quickly as a canoe tipping over. 

For civilian populations, war and conflict bring hardship. International Humanitarian Law (IHL) exists to protect those who are not fighting, or who are no longer fighting in wars and conflicts – and to help populations from suffering. IHL protects civilians from being targets, but also protects the materials civilians need to survive 

The community of Coaque is about a 15-minute drive along the highway from where the Canadian Red Cross field hospital is based in Pedernales, Ecuador. The field hospital has been supporting a local health facility damaged by the April earthquake. Doctor Patricia Connick has been going out on mobile clinics like this nearly every day of her one-month mission.

​There is an unlikely friendship -  Alzinia Pailin is an American Red Cross volunteer from California and Marie Bernatchez is a French speaking Canadian Red Cross volunteer from Quebec. But after being paired together on a three-week deployment in the small town of Lac La Biche, south of Fort McMurray, as part of the Alberta fire response, the two women found much common ground including their work as Red Cross volunteers and quickly became friends.

Last summer, we had a few tornado scares in Southern Alberta. Working at the Red Cross, I felt as though I was prepared to stay safe. However, I learned that there are actually a lot of myths around tornado safety. Learn more about some of the most common ones. 

The Canadian Red Cross is recognizing our 120^th anniversary through a new online platform. The project, celebrating 120 years of helping those in need, highlights important moments in our history through significant events and stories displayed on an interactive timeline.  Last week, I had the opportunity to sit down with veteran Red Cross volunteer, Ted Itani, to talk about Red Cross history and one item in particular that connects our Red Cross stories: a model landmine.