Three years ago, two passionate WHS juniors made a significant decision to start running a club called the Red Cross Club, which is a group of people that volunteered to help their community by learning life-saving skills. The club’s founders found a faculty adviser in math teacher Andrew Yurgold, who supports and oversees the management of the club.

“The Red Cross Club is mainly operated by students,” Yurgold said. “I’m just here to help with the things that they would need an adult for.” This shows that Yurgold gives them the opportunity to run their club and express their ideas with their support.

Throughout the school year, the Red Cross Club hosts a vast variety of events to help share and raise attention to safety procedures with students and members of the faculty. For example, the club invites professionals trained in CPR to show interested students using professional supplies. This gives an opportunity to students who are interested in majoring somewhere near the medical field to be familiar with activities that can save lives. Additionally, they have had self care kits that they distribute out to veterans in the community of Walpole. However, the club’s largest event that they hold is the annual blood drive that they host in the spring time. Red Cross Club members collaborate with the American Red Cross association as well as with the WHS Student Council to help run the donation event. This event is extremely successful with students and staff members of WHS.

Students who are intrested can visit the club’s Instagram account at @walpoleredcross. They post regularly and help raise awareness throughout the Walpole community.  Club meetings typically are the first Wednesdays of the month.

 “I really see this as a good opportunity for people who don’t contribute to sports or would just like to help out,” Yurgold said.