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Clara Barton Influence On The American Red Cross

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The American Red Cross, an organization said to have helped millions of people, changing the world one day at a time. The group has been all on its own, receiving no government funding. Even without the funding, they have done an incredible job saving lives. Many are thankful but are yet to wonder, how did this all begin? It began with Clara Barton and her passion for helping others.
Barton was born and bred in Oxford, Massachusetts. As a young adolescent, Barton was always helpful to her brother David after he was in an accident. At the age of fifteen, she channeled her kind-hearted self into the art of teaching. Barton taught in her own town for twelve years before moving on to New Jersey with high hopes of opening her own school. She had a wild passion for teaching and greatly desired for her new school to be successful. “Show me a child well disciplined, perfectly governed at home, and I will show you a child that never breaks a rule at school (Clara's Life). …show more content…

She reported to only have six people at the opening of her school. That suddenly changed when people in the area found out about Barton’s miraculous teaching abilities. When attendance grew to over two hundred students, the town decided that they needed to build a brand new school for the following year. Her dream was coming true, or at least she thought. The new school opened, and she soon found out that she was not going to be the principal, it was to be a man with twice her pay. Clara left soon after, starting a new journey in Washington D.C (Foner, Eric, and John A. Garraty.

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