By Town Crier Staff Report

Karen Duncan and Vinnie Biberdorf, Los Altos residents and American Red Cross volunteers, received the Crystal Bowl Award in recognition of their services to the American Red Cross at the Junior League of San Jose’s 33rd Volunteer Recognition Lunch last Friday.

The annual event celebrates important contributions made by volunteers in the community.

“Their theme, ‘Volunteers Making a Difference,’ reflects the commitment of time and energy that both Vinnie and Karen have invested in our chapter,” said Adriana Flores-Ragade, director of community services.

Biberdorf has been with the Red Cross since 1967. In her role as volunteer and staff, she has worked in the disaster and health and safety areas of the Red Cross. Over the years, she has trained and recruited several community members to volunteer at the chapter. Her current project focuses on teaching basic first aid to everyone in the community so that they know what to do when there is no doctor or emergency worker on the scene. “Vinnie is the youngest 69-year-old I have met; she inspires me to come to work each day,” Flores-Ragade said.

Duncan has volunteered with the Palo Alto Area Red Cross for 12 years. “Karen has been instrumental in creating the infrastructure we need to effectively respond to disasters in our community,” Flores-Ragade said. In her current role as chairwoman of disaster services, her project is recruiting and training leadership volunteers.

Duncan was one of the first volunteers from the Bay Area to go to New York and Washington, D.C., after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11. One of her assignments was working with the national Red Cross call center to help handle the volume of calls and e-mails generated in the weeks following the tragedy. “We helped clear 15,000 e-mails,” Duncan said. “My Red Cross training was critical in helping me do my job,” she said.

“At the Red Cross, our goal is empowering our communities to deal with small and large-scale disasters,” said Trish Bubenik, executive director of the chapter. “Our chapter has been immeasurably enriched by the efforts of Karen and Vinnie and volunteers like them,” she said. “They embody the spirit of volunteerism because they are passionate about the mission of our organization - to prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters.

For more information on the American Red Cross and its activities, call Deepa Arora, public relations manager, at 688-0424.