Your Red Cross Update

On a cool Saturday morning in Richmond, Calif., a group of colleagues from construction management company Vanir traded hard hats and project schedules for clipboards and smoke alarms. They were part of the American Red Cross Sound the Alarm campaign, installing free smoke alarms and sharing fire safety information in at-risk communities. 

But for this team, the day was about more than just service. It was also about connection. 

Building something different 

Construction managers are used to building physical spaces such as schools and offices, but they don’t always get the chance to build relationships with each other. 

Cymbre Potter, project director at Vanir, said that what began as a simple idea more than five years ago—“let’s give back where we work”—has evolved into something more powerful: a shared experience that anchors her dispersed team. 

Spread across job sites and home offices, her colleagues rarely gather in one place. Like many modern teams, they collaborate constantly, but often at a distance. 

On the last Saturday in April, four of them met at a community center where Red Cross team members, fire crews, local government officials, and dozens of volunteers shared a breakfast from Noah’s Bagels before being trained for the day’s activities. Once supplied with smoke alarms, a ladder and tools, and the materials they needed, they walked to the home of a family that had signed up the previous weekend, the first of five homes assigned to the team.  

Why Sound the Alarm resonated 

The initiative started when Cymbre was looking for a practical way for her team to give back to the community. Her husband, who works for the American Red Cross Northern California Coastal Region, knew Sound the Alarm needed volunteers. For a team already focused on building and safety, a volunteer opportunity that protects homes was a natural fit. 

There’s a reason companies invest in offsites, retreats, and team-building exercises, but those can sometimes feel forced or disconnected from real work. Out on the streets of Richmond, there was a sense of purpose that didn’t need to be manufactured. Not everyone in Cymbre’s team attends, but a core group returns year after year and has turned colleagues into something closer to a community. 

The Sound the Alarm events held across the country throughout the year are designed to be accessible: no specialized skills required. Volunteers are trained on-site and paired up to test existing smoke alarms, install new ones as needed, and help families create their home fire escape plan. 

The stakes are real: home fires remain one of the most common disasters in the United States, and working smoke alarms can cut the risk of death in half. The campaign’s broader message, captured in efforts like the #EndHomeFires initiative, underscores how simple interventions can make a life-saving difference.  

A model for corporate engagement 

What this team experienced on a small scale points to a much larger opportunity. 

Corporate volunteerism, especially when paired with initiatives like Sound the Alarm, can be a powerful way to align business goals with community impact. And it works best when it’s not treated as a one-off event. 

Companies that lean into this can: 

• Strengthen team cohesion by giving employees meaningful, shared experiences outside the workplace,
• Connect employees to the communities they serve, reinforcing a sense of purpose,
• Scale impact by encouraging broader participation across offices, regions, or entire organizations,
• Build a culture of service that goes beyond a single day on the calendar. 

Sponsorship takes it even further: by supporting campaigns financially or operationally, donors can enable more installations across more neighborhoods, protecting more lives. The events couldn’t happen without the generous donations from major sponsors, whose logos adorn the back of the volunteers’ t-shirts. 

Companies can also support Sound the Alarm with in-kind donations, such as the lunch from Chipotle that volunteers enjoyed while sharing stories about their morning helping the community. 

Sometimes the most effective way to build a stronger team isn’t another meeting or workshop; it’s stepping out together, doing something that matters, and letting the connection follow naturally. 

Learn more about how your company can partner and get involved with the Red Cross at our website. Individuals who want to volunteer for future volunteer opportunities such as Sound the Alarm can start their application today.