A Sea Captain and Bicyclist Among 15 Heroes to Receive Red Cross Honors

LOS ANGELES, May 16, 2023 — Our heroes don’t wear capes, but they do stem profuse bleeding, perform CPR on total strangers in a bar and revive oxygen deprived travelers at cruising altitudes. Los Angeles is full of brave and courageous people, and on Thursday, May 18, the American Red Cross Los Angeles Region will honor 15 Angelenos who leapt into action at a moment’s notice at the 18th Annual Hometown Heroes Ceremony. This year’s honorees all performed extraordinary acts of courage and humanitarian service to save a life – proving to be true, albeit capeless Heroes.

WHAT:	Red Cross honors 15 people from across Los Angeles County who demonstrated heroism through their acts of bravery and humanitarian service at the 18th Annual Hometown Heroes Ceremony.
WHERE:	Carson Civic Center 801 E Carson St., Carson, CA 90745
WHEN:	Thursday, May 18, 2023; Program begins at noon. *MEDIA RSVP: 213-347-4775 or* *LAmedia@redcross.org*
WHO:	The 2023 Hometown Heroes are:
	Captain Maurice Scott – Captain on the Sause Bros. tugboat Redondo Anthony Lo Grande – Deckhand on Sause Bros. tugboat Redondo Sergeant Rafael Rodriguez – Whittier resident Elsa Gernandt-Anderson – works in Burbank Tom Horan – Thousand Oaks resident Michael Kassarjian – Pasadena resident James Burkett – Lakewood resident Gary Jenkins – West LA Veterans Administration staff Natalie Carroll – La Mirada resident Taylor Antenucci – La Mirada resident Matthew Kitchen – Monrovia resident John Hawley – Red Cross Volunteer Lydia Hoffman – Red Cross Volunteer Amanda Morita – Red Cross Employee Steve CdeBaca – Norwalk resident Opportunities for photos and interviews with heroes available.

For 18 years, the Red Cross has celebrated its Hometown Heroes – ordinary people who through extraordinary actions, made a positive difference in their communities through acts in either emergency response, disaster preparedness and prevention or exemplified the Red Cross mission in similar ways.

The heroes being honored this week represent LA’s melting pot of communities, people of all ages with varied abilities. They’re all unified, however, by one key factor — something inside compelled them to help another person whose life was in danger. Heroes, like Rafael Rodriguez, an off-duty officer, who rushed to aid a car crash victim stuck and unconscious in their car. Rodriquez was able to extract the driver moments before their vehicle burst into flames.

“The spirit of heroism and valor is truly alive and well in the communities we serve in the Los Angeles Region,” said Amy Papageorges, Executive Director for the American Red Cross Greater Long Beach and South Bay Chapter. “The level of bravery and altruism that our Hometown Heroes have demonstrated this year is nothing short of inspirational. We look forward to sharing their stories of hope on May 18.”

The Hometown Heroes awards luncheon is made possible by the generosity of sponsors including: Bank of America, Sony Pictures Entertainment, TABC, California Resources Corporation, Capital Group, Disney World Wide, Marathon Petroleum, Edison International, Westfield-URW, 24 Hour Home Care, Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo, Acrisure-Busby Stone Risk Management, Air Products, BRAGG Companies, Evalyn M. Bauer Foundation, Fastlane Transportation, Southern California Gas Company, Total Western and Watson Land Company.

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org/la or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCrossLA.