Grand Opening Set for Red Cross Center

The American Red Cross will hold a grand opening from 2 to 4 p.m. today for its new service center.

The center will provide health and safety training, disaster preparedness and relief, as well as other services in the Camarillo area.

Organizers opened the facility after residents complained about having to drive so far to the nearest Red Cross center, said Ann Sobel, executive director of the organization’s Ventura County chapter.

Other Red Cross centers are in Simi Valley, Ventura and at the Naval Construction Battalion Center in Port Hueneme.

“Since we did not have anything in the central part of the county, it was the first place for us to do that,” she said.

The grand opening will include a ribbon-cutting by the Camarillo Chamber of Commerce, a display of historical Red Cross memorabilia, a Red Cross disaster vehicle display and CPR and first aid demonstrations.

There will also be a drawing for a day of golf for two at Las Posas Country Club.

The center, at 836 Calle Plano, will be open Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. It will offer baby-sitting classes, first aid and CPR training, and water safety courses, Sobel said.

The center will be named after the late Betty R. Plotkin, a longtime Red Cross volunteer and supporter whose husband, Peter, donated the use of the building in her honor.