On the occasion of 8 March 2012, International Women's Day, the Red Cross/EU Office is celebrating the extraordinary work of women across Europe who stay active as volunteers after retirement.

In connection with the European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations, the Red Cross highlights on its website the personal stories of passionate senior volunteers with the most vulnerable in the EU.

The testimonies of five retired women from Belgium, Latvia, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden show the diversity of voluntary work across Europe:

• Lisa Wynants (Belgium) works as a voluntary nurse with disabled people with the Flemish Red Cross.
• Maud Ekstrom (Sweden) is a volunteer leader in the Red Cross branch of Bromma and works with children, helping them with their homework and language skills.
• Janina Reksna (Latvia) works in the Kauguri Health Promotion Centre educating young mothers and pregnant women on different issues.
• Maria Onuskova (Slovakia) has been working as a volunteer in Slovak Red Cross since 1949. Last year she was awarded as one of the most valuable Slovak Red Cross volunteers.  
• Rosario Henríquez González (Spain) is a volunteer for the Red Cross in Las Palmas, where she helps people clearing administrative procedures and visiting the municipal social services.

To read the complete stories of these women, please visith the Red Cross/EU Office webpage.