FRANKFORT — On WILO and Boone 102.7 FM’s Party Line, a regional American Red Cross leader said the organization’s work goes well beyond disaster relief. It also covers blood collection, free smoke alarm installation and help for families after a single home fire.
Dr. Sarah Moss is executive director of the American Red Cross Northwest Indiana Chapter. She told host Shan Sheridan that her chapter covers 24 counties, including Clinton County, and serves just over 2 million people. It reaches south to Putnam County, north to the East Chicago and Lake County area, and east to Elkhart.
From Blood Donor to Executive Director
Moss grew up in Cass County and graduated from Caston High School. She then attended Purdue University and recently finished a doctorate at Indiana Wesleyan University.
She said her path to the Red Cross started when she gave blood in high school and college. “I realized the impact that my blood donation was making,” she said.
She joined the Red Cross in late 2010 in Biomedical and Blood Services. In that role she worked with donors, sponsors, schools and colleges in a territory of seven to 11 counties. About three years ago she moved to the humanitarian side as executive director, which put her in charge of all of the organization’s lines of service.
“Anyone can be impacted by a disaster at any time. Anyone could require a blood transfusion at any time,” Moss said. “I really appreciate the mission-driven work that we do.”
Repeated Disasters in Northwest Indiana
Moss said her chapter handled a large Level 4 disaster in June. The very next day after it closed out, another round of tornadoes hit at or near the same location.
“Those folks up there, bless their heart, they’re being hit really, really hard,” she said. “It’s seeing a lot of those same individuals, a lot of those same communities, over and over.”
She said more than 800 volunteers from across the country have helped with the recent Indiana tornadoes and flooding. Their work has included logistics, feeding, sheltering and IT support. Red Cross shelter resident transition teams also work one-on-one with displaced residents to help them find suitable, sustainable housing.
Moss also deploys nationally as a liaison between the Red Cross and elected officials. She recalled her deployment to the California wildfires and driving the Pacific Coast Highway between Malibu and Santa Monica. Homes that once sat 25 to 50 yards from the ocean had been destroyed, and cars were left “charred beyond recognition” in driveways.
“It really truly can happen to anybody at any time,” she said.
A Constant Need for Blood
“The need for blood is constant,” Moss said. She noted that someone in the United States needs a blood transfusion every two seconds. The Red Cross provides about 40 percent of the nation’s blood supply.
Blood cannot be manufactured or stockpiled. It must be transfused within 42 days of collection. The Red Cross needs about 12,500 units every day to keep up with hospital demand.
Summer and winter are the hardest seasons, Moss said. People get busy with travel and holidays, and summer is also “trauma season,” when accidents increase. She referred to a shortage in July 2026 and asked residents to make and keep donation appointments this fall.
The Red Cross also supplies blood to military hospitals and bases, and it keeps service teams on military installations overseas.
Local Blood Drives
Moss listed several upcoming drives:
– **Frankfort: Faith Family Church, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. This drive started at the local hospital and moved to the church when it outgrew the space.
– **Logansport: the annual Battle of the Badges drive at All Saints Catholic Church on Market Street, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Police, fire, state police and sheriff’s agencies compete in it. Moss believes the sheriff’s department holds the trophy now.
– **Walton: Lewis Cass High School.
Appointments can be made at redcrossblood.org.
Volunteers and Free Smoke Alarms
Moss said the Red Cross “really has something for everyone.” Volunteers don’t have to deploy for two weeks. Each county has disaster action teams that respond to local home fires when fire departments call. They help families replace urgent needs such as medication, glasses and hearing aids.
People can sign up at redcross.org/volunteer. Someone from volunteer services will then call to talk about their interests and onboarding.
Moss shared two moments that stayed with her. One was in Winchester, where an elderly woman whose roof had been torn off by a tornado arrived at a shelter with no shoes or socks. “She needed someone to give her a hug and say, ‘It’s OK, we’re going to help you,'” Moss said.
The other came from a home fire campaign in North Judson in April. Volunteers installed smoke alarms in the home of a father, his two young sons and their dog. About three months later, a fire started in the attic. The home had no smoke alarms before, and the new ones let the whole family get out safely, dog included.
Residents without working smoke alarms can call 1-800-RED-CROSS to have them installed for free. Donations can be made at redcross.org.
