Red Cross chapters around the state are downsizing, and that means some people are losing their jobs.

It is all part of a national plan to cut costs. The Yakima, Walla Walla and Kittitas County Red Cross offices are all eliminating administrative positions.

Peggy Hoggarth, executive director of the Benton-Franklin Red Cross Chapter, says the offices are not going away and that many services -- such as blood drives -- will continue at the Yakima branch. But fewer people will be in the office.

It’s painful. It’s been hard on the community and the staff, but in the long run this is what we need to do so that we can continue to touch more lives in our state.

Hoggarth says the much-needed services they provide to the public will not diminish due to the loss of administrative staff, including the elimination of the executive director position in Yakima. The Spokane and Kennewick offices will be the central offices for all of Eastern Washington.

The changes will also force Red Cross chapters like the one in Yakima to rely more heavily on volunteers.

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