Brookhaven Mayor Joe Cox signed a proclamation Tuesday before the city board meeting acknowledging March 2015 as American Red Cross Month.

Representatives from the organization were initially on the agenda to appear before the board but were not able to stay and had to handle their business early. Alderwoman-at-large Karen Sullivan, Alderman for Ward 6 David Phillips and City Attorney Joe Fernald were present at the signing of the proclamation by the mayor.

The proclamation states that March, American Red Cross Month, “is a special time to recognize and thank our heroes – those who volunteer, donate blood, take life-saving courses or provide financial donations to support an organization whose mission is to help those in need.”

American Red Cross responds to nearly 70,000 disasters a year across the county, provides 400,000 services to military members, veterans and civilians, collects and distributes about 40 percent of the nation’s blood supply and trains more than 7 million people in first aid, water safety and other life-saving skills every year.

“They’re a trustworthy organization,” Sullivan said. “We’ve certainly needed them in the past, but I hope we don’t need them anytime soon.”

Sullivan said her two favorite organizations are the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army, and she’s thankful for the work they do.

The American Red Cross in Brookhaven, provides 24-hour support to members of the military, veterans and their families and provides training in CPR, aquatics safety and first aid.

The proclamation also states the city would like to remember those “who help all of us here in Brookhaven by giving their time to help their neighbor, and thank our heroes – our volunteers, blood donors, class takers and financial supporters who help us assist those in need.”

The American Red Cross relies on donations of time, money and blood to fulfill its mission of humanitarianism.d