Post by Vida HR

#womenshistorymonth Day 10: Clarissa (Clara) Harlowe Barton was born on December 25, 1821, in Oxford, Massachusetts. Clara first found her calling when she tended to her brother David after an accident. Barton later found another outlet for her desire to be helpful as a teenager. She became a teacher at age 15 and later opened a free public school in New Jersey. Then, during the Civil War, Barton sought to help the soldiers in any way she could. Not content sitting on the sidelines, Barton served as an independent nurse where she cared for wounded soldiers. Barton was nicknamed "the angel of the battlefield" for her work. After the war ended in 1865, Barton worked for the War Department, helping to either reunite missing soldiers and their families or find out more about those who were missing. While visiting Europe, Barton worked with a relief organization known as the International Red Cross during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–'71. After returning home to the US, she began to lobby for an American branch of this international organization. The American Red Cross Society was founded in 1881 and Barton served as its first president. Clara never took a salary for her work within the organization and sometimes used her funds to support relief efforts.