Approaching 40 years of service to the Red Cross, Cindi Moon wears many hats as a volunteer. For the Indiana Region, Cindi is on the Service to the Armed Forces team as a Volunteer Partner. In this role, she represents the Red Cross at events, trains deployers before they travel overseas and manages their clothing as the self-proclaimed “clothing matron.” Apart from her everyday duties, she also serves as a Blood Donor Ambassador at local blood drives.
Her work doesn’t end there, though. At the national level, Cindi works on the Disaster Mental Health Team as a pre-deployment screener and is one of 20 trained nurses in the country who can present to medical providers on behalf of the Service to the Armed Forces program.
Because of her selfless contributions and extraordinary dedication, Cindi recently received the American Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces Achievement Award. The award is given to those who embody the spirit and mission of the program, and as her award rightfully noted, “Cindi’s generosity and spirit are truly inspiring.”
She attributes her fulfilling journey to her mother. “My mother made me get involved,” Cindi laughed. “She was a Red Cross nurse who retired in 2021. She had been helping provide first aid at the Indiana State Fair since 1964 and said, ‘You should come join the Red Cross with me!’ And so my very first day was August 2nd, 1986.”
Since that first state fair, Cindi has maintained a commitment to serving others. She began in Nursing Services but quickly expanded her duties upon seeing the range of opportunities available. She began aiding in disasters after the 1987 Indianapolis Airport Ramada Inn plane crash and assisted with educational programs like the Pillowcase Project. A highlight of her journey was working First Aid at the 2014 Indiana State Fair with her mother as she celebrated her 50th anniversary with the Red Cross.
The most rewarding aspect of her Red Cross journey, though, is watching volunteers she knew as teenagers become successful in their future careers. Cindi says many have stayed involved with the Red Cross into adulthood while starting full-time jobs.
“One that I’m most proud of started as a teenage volunteer with me, and he’s now a vice president within his Red Cross division,” Cindi stated with a tearful smile. “I like to joke that I taught him everything he knows!”
When asked why she continues to serve in the Red Cross, Cindi emphasized, “I just love it. There’s always something to do, and it keeps me on my feet.” We’re thankful for Cindi’s hard work throughout the years and look forward to what she is yet to accomplish.
If you’re interested in becoming a Red Cross volunteer, please visit RedCross.org/Volunteer to learn more.
Written by Communications Intern Mallory Kempf.