Carol Braeger may never know how many lives she has affected, but as a volunteer for the Vial of Life program she has the opportunity to help people everyday.

Originally intended to prepare the elderly for medical emergencies, Vial of Life allows families the opportunity to store important medical information in a central location for emergency personnel to find and use.  Braeger has passed out over 1,000 vials since 1991 and believes it is important because it helps people prepare for urgent situations.  “If you had to dial 9-1-1, you may get excited and even forget your own name.  The vial is something good to have; it seems so simple but it can really make a difference in an emergency.  The vial speaks for you when you are unable to speak.”

Braeger stresses the importance of the Vial of Life program for every family, not only the elderly.  “Now the community is growing so much and people may not know their neighbors.  It is important for every family to have a vial filled with information.”

Since preparedness is part of the Red Cross mission, the Red Cross is proud to provide a service like Vial of Life that can help any family prepare for a wide range of disasters.  Red Cross volunteers help operate the program by providing vials and maintaining records.

In addition to health records, the vial may also contain: a picture to identify family members, a Living Will or equivalent, any type of Do Not Resuscitate documentation (if applicable), the latest copy of a family member’s EKG or anything else that may be useful to emergency personnel.

No matter what the crisis, the information stored in a vial will help emergency personnel quickly react and remove stress from the situation, and Vial of Life volunteers like Braeger make this all possible.  “The most rewarding part of working with Vial of Life is helping the community be prepared.  I always tell people that the vial is good to have filled out, but hopefully they never need to use it.”