ARCAN Update by Becky McCorry, President 

April 2026

We are excited about our first ARCAN in-person gathering, which will be in Philadelphia on September 25-27 and held in partnership with the American Red Cross Overseas Association (ARCOA) and a group of former and current Red Cross disaster services staff and volunteers. 

This “3Union” will bring together a range of former and current Red Crossers to meet in person to reconnect and reminisce, share stories and strengthen the bonds that have always made this network so special. While we all worked in different parts of the organization, our Red Cross experience unites us.

Our members tell us that one of the reasons they are part of ARCAN is to reconnect and this event is a great opportunity to do that in person! 

This gathering is open to both current and former American Red Cross employees and volunteers —we hope to create an event that reflects the full breadth of our shared experience. I believe it may be the start of more partnerships and collaborations among Red Cross alumni groups. Look for more information in the days and weeks ahead.

Red Cross Pension Management Changes

Another matter of interest to a number of ARCAN members is the change occurring to the administration of the Red Cross pension. The bottom line is that your pension amount should not change; what will be different is the insurer issuing the pension payments.

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ICRC delivers the first batch of emergency relief items to Iranian Red Crescent Society

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has dispatched 171 metric tonnes of essential relief items to the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS), with five truckloads delivered yesterday. This marks the first ICRC shipment to Iran since the latest escalation of hostilities and one of the first cross-border humanitarian deliveries to the country in six weeks.

A total of fourteen trucks dispatched from the ICRC warehouse in Jordan carried vital household items sufficient to meet the needs of nearly 25,000 people. The supplies include blankets, jerrycans, kitchen sets, tarpaulins, hygiene parcels, solar lamps, buckets and mattresses. The first shipment of five trucks was handed over to the IRCS in Tehran for onward distribution. The remaining shipment consisting of nine trucks will be handed over to the IRCS later this week. 

Additionally, 200 generators and 100 motor pumps purchased locally were donated to the IRCS in support of their relief and rescue operations.   

The ICRC is also preparing additional deliveries of life-saving medical supplies and other critical assistance that it hopes to dispatch in the coming weeks as it scales up support for the IRCS’s humanitarian response.  

“At a time when humanitarian needs remain high across the country, we hope this shipment will bring some relief to communities enduring the devastating impact of the conflict,” said Vincent Cassard, head of the ICRC delegation in Iran.

Full story here