LOCAL RED CROSS PITCHED IN WHEN OHIO RIVER FLOODED.

Byline: STACY BROWN

Judy Goldman has been working with disaster victims for the Red Cross for 19 years, and last month she answered the call of duty again.

The San Fernando resident went to Cincinnati last month to help victims of the Ohio River floods. ``It's all about doing your part,'' she says. ``At times it can be difficult being away from your family, but I realize how much it helps others.''

Goldman worked in family services and handled welfare inquiries for disaster victims in southern Ohio, northern Kentucky and Indiana.

Susanne Boston, a Tarzana native, was awakened at 7 a.m. Feb. 8 by Red Cross officials who needed her in Kentucky. She is one of 24 Rapid Response Corps members who were there to aid families in need as a result of the Southeast tornadoes.

``I had just returned from the Northern California floods,'' she said, ``but when duty calls ...'' Boston, a University of California, San Diego graduate, is in her second year with the American Red Cross.

Hollywood has also expressed its commitment.

Academy Award winner Billy Bob Thornton (``Sling Blade'') and others wore royal-blue ribbons for the Oscars telecast and post-awards parties as a sign of solidarity with the flood and tornado victims and their families.

To date, officials say the tornadoes and floods have affected as many as 25,000 families. Red Cross relief efforts are estimated to cost more than $13 million.

You too can join Goldman, Boston and members of the Hollywood community in helping the victims of these and other disasters, by calling (800) HELP-NOW [phone] or [phone] (Spanish).

You also can contribute to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund by sending a check to your local Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can get more information about Red Cross disaster activities and make a secure on-line credit-card contribution by visiting the American Red Cross World Wide Web site at http://www.redcross.org.

Cal State Northridge will host a daylong seminar to explore violence against women Thursday. School officials say politicians, professional advocates and community activists will be on hand to talk about rape, domestic abuse, poverty, discrimination and substandard job conditions.

The conference, which will feature workshops and the showing of ``The Clothesline Project,'' an international collection of T-shirts decorated by survivors of domestic violence, will begin at 8 a.m. at the Student Union on the east side of the campus.

Local students will vie for the crown of top speller at the Daily News Annual Spelling Bee at Taft High School in Woodland Hills on Saturday.

Forty-one middle school students from the Los Angeles Unified School District and outlying areas will compete in the Regional Spelling Bee, with the winner going to the national competition in Washington, D.C.

The spelling bee will begin at 10 a.m. and will be taped for ESPN, which will broadcast the contest in May.

Imagine asking students to create their own school and describe what they would teach and how they would teach it. Disney and the Just Think Foundation are doing that in sponsoring a contest that will send four teams of students from the United States to the International Children's Summit, to be held June 9-13 at Disneyland Paris.

There, they will join nearly 600 students from more than 40 countries to participate in workshops and brainstorming sessions to discuss issues that affect children globally, say officials of Children's Summit and the Just Think Foundation.

For entry information and complete rules about the U.S. Children's Summit Contest, call [phone] or visit the Children's Summit Web sites at www.disney.com or www.justthink.org.

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Photo

Photo: Susanne Boston, left, and Judy Goldman, at the Red Cross offices in Van Nuys, recently aided Ohio River flood victims.

Phil McCarten/Daily News