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    • Media Release | Bids replace buckets in New Zealand Red Cross annual appeal
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  • Centenary

World War I

In 2015 we celebrated 100 years of humanitarian action.  Read the stories below from WWI.

Ostrovo nurses

Women and WWI

During the war, many New Zealand nurses and Voluntary Aid Detachments (VADs) went overseas to assist sick and wounded soldiers in hospitals in Europe and Africa. It was their own choice and it was a dangerous role.

St John Red Cross

The start of Red Cross in New Zealand

In 1915, people began asking Lord Liverpool, New Zealand’s first Governor-General, about the Red Cross in New Zealand as it was already well established in Britain. Lord Liverpool then made a call to action.

Ambulance WWI

Using the Red Cross emblem

During World War One (WWI), the Red Cross emblem was used by ambulances and medical personnel to protect the sick and wounded in accordance with the Geneva Conventions. The red cross emblem continues to be used as protection today. So what are the rules around using the emblem?

Our first shop

Our first Red Cross shop

The first Red Cross Shop was inaugurated on 1 June 1915 in Cathedral Square, Christchurch next to the General Post Office. By April 1916, more than £4,450 ($591,196.68, 2014 inflation) had been raised for the Red Cross Fund for the Sick and Wounded.

  • In New Zealand
  • Disaster risk management
  • First Aid courses and education
  • Meals on Wheels
  • Migration programmes
  • Restoring Family Links
  • Overseas
  • Building resilient communities
  • International delegate programme
  • Pacific partner programme
  • Responding to disasters and crises
  • Tonga volcanic eruption and tsunami
  • First Aid
  • Book a first aid course
  • All available courses
  • Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs)
  • First Aid App
  • Are you workplace compliant?
  • About us
  • Our history
  • What we stand for
  • The red cross emblem
  • Governance and leadership
  • Our partnerships
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© New Zealand Red Cross  |  Site Map  |  Privacy and Disclosure statement

New Zealand Red Cross Incorporated is a registered charity with the New Zealand Charities Commission (CC21860), making you eligible for a tax refund of up to a third of your donation. All transactions are billed in New Zealand dollars.

New Zealand Red Cross operates from 69 Molesworth Street, Thorndon, Wellington 6011, New Zealand.


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