Christine Birkenstock '97 Takes Reins of Virginia Red Cross Chapter

January 19, 2008

January 19, 2008, Greencastle, Ind. - "I'm happy to be a part of the philanthropy scene in Washington," says 1997 DePauw University graduate Christine (Patterson) Birkenstock, the recently appointed executive director of the Loudoun County, Virginia chapter of the American Red Cross. "We want to see each other succeed," she adds.

A story in Leesburg Today profiles Birkenstock, who previously served as executive director of the New York City Fire Department Foundation. Prior to that, "Birkenstock led development efforts at the International Association of Fire Chiefs in Fairfax for three years. She also worked as an executive with the Boy Scouts of American in Washington, D.C. and Indianapolis, Ind., her hometown." The newspaper also points out that Birkenstock "has English and Russian double major bachelors degrees from DePauw University."

She took her new post in November and is planning budget cuts to eliminate the budget shortfall she inherited. "It's a very lean budget American Red Cross.gif already," Birkenstock tells the newspaper. "There isn't a lot of excess. The revenue streams are half of what they were last year."