Kennewick’s Wartime Red Cross Success
A local Red Cross supper and sale raises $215 for the war effort, highlighting community unity during the First World War.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The Red Cross Christmas store and cafeteria supper given yesterday by the ladies of the Red Cross was a far greater success than anybody had expected. The ladies took in $215, more than $100 of which was realized from the supper alone, and the receipts would have been more had there been room enough to serve all who came. Many of the country folk who came into town were unable to get into the building and as a result took their evening meal at the restaurants. One of the fine features of the day was the fine spirit shown by many people of German birth or parentage who have heretofore not been active in Red Cross work. There were no slackers; everybody worked and worked willingly. So successful was the supper feature that plans are now being worked out by the ladies to give a similar supper once each month during the winter and early spring.
“One of the fine features of the day was the fine spirit shown by many people of German birth or parentage who have heretofore not been active in Red Cross work. There were no slackers.”
This 1917 report captures the intense domestic mobilization during WWI. It is particularly notable for its mention of local German-Americans working to prove their loyalty in a time of extreme xenophobic hysteria.
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