This post is brought to you by Master Lock in conjunction with Global Influence. All opinions are my own.

The tree that took down our power for 8 days during Hurricane Sandy

When Hurricane Sandy struck back in 2012, we were without power for eight grueling days. Eight days with no running water, no heat and towards the end, no sanity. The American Red Cross set up a station at the local college. We could shower, get a hot meal and get warmed up. Without that, I think I would have totally gone insane. All of this happened right after my last exploratory surgery. In fact, the lights went out less than a week after my surgery. After several days of extreme stress, I almost fainted at the American Red Cross station.

The volunteers called me an ambulance and consoled my then-7-year-old son by showering him with small gifts, like a fantastic cozy blanket and a coloring book. Luckily my mom was with us to take care of him! When I got to the hospital, it turned out I had a bladder infection. I am thankful to the American Red Cross for all that they did to help out those of us dealing with Hurricane Sandy. I’m especially thankful to the volunteer who insisted on calling an ambulance and sending me to the hospital, I would have wrote off my dizziness as a symptom of my massive anxiety attacks from the situation. The American Red Cross protected us so that we could go on to protect those we love, like my son and my beloved cats & dogs (I didn’t have the guinea pigs at that time).

Master Lock : Protecting All That You Love and Care About

Master Lock, the company that makes its living creating protects to protect all the things you care about, wants to help the American Red Cross protect all the people you care about. Master Lock is kicking off its year-long program to raise funds for the American Red Cross and they need your help. Just tweet what you most want to protect using the hashtag #MasterLockProtects. Every time you do, Master Lock donates $1 to the American Red Cross. Each tweet also gets you an entry into a sweepstakes for a chance to win one of 28 prize packs. In addition, Master Lock is kicking off the program with a $10,000 donation to the American Red Cross.

From February 17th-28th, every tweet you send with the hashtag gets you an entry into a great giveaway.  Check out the  Rules and Regulations for Sweepstakes for more details.  Prizes include:

Three grand prizes, each consisting of:

• $100 Visa Gift Card
• Master Lock 5422D Portable Key Safe
• 1547DCM Backpack Lock
• 5900D SafeSpace
•  Red Cross Emergency Preparedness Kit

25 First Prize Winners will receive:

• $50 Visa Gift Card
• Master Lock 5422D Portable Key Safe
• 1547DCM Backpack Lock
• 5900D SafeSpace
• Red Cross Emergency Preparedness Kit

Help kick off the event by attending the Master Lock Cares Twitter party on Tuesday, February 18^th from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. ET.  Tweet with the #MasterLockCares hashtag and follow @ResourcefulMom as well as sponsor @MasterLockUS. Ten winners will take home great prize packs during the party.

 Has the American Red Cross made an impact on your life in any way? Tell me about it in the comments.