Holiday Heroes Blood Drive In Newtown On July 3

 

The American Red Cross will hold a Holiday Heroes blood drive on Wednesday, July 3, from 8:30 am to 6:45 pm, in the Alexandria Room of Edmond Town Hall, 45 Main Street.

“Summer is always a difficult time to collect blood,” said Red Cross spokesperson Lynn Townshend. “However, while most of us are enjoying vacations and leisure activities this summer, the need for blood continues. In fact, patients rely on communities and businesses even more because high schools and colleges are closed.

“It is extremely important that people make time to donate because an hour of your time and a pint of your blood can mean a lifetime to someone else,” she said. “The need for blood never takes a vacation.”

Across the state, an average of 600 units of blood are needed each day to meet the demand of Connecticut’s hospital patients.

The blood drive on July 3 is especially important because donations traditionally decrease during the summer months when many persons are on vacation. Blood is needed on a constant basis in the state for accident victims and those requiring complicated surgeries, as well as people undergoing chemotherapy and those with other life-threatening medical conditions.

Donated blood must be separated into red cells, platelets, and plasma and undergo preliminary testing within eight hours. The complete battery of tests takes 17 hours.

Only five percent of the eligible population, which is about 8 million people, donate blood each year, according to the Red Cross. The majority of those donors are of the World War II generation. Last year there were 96,000 blood donors in Connecticut, down from a peak of 133,000 in 1994, a decline that some attribute to more stringent requirements for donating blood.

Donors must be at least 17 years old, weigh 110 pounds or more, and be in generally good health. To make an appointment to give blood call 800-GIVE LIFE (800-448-3543) or check the website at www.bloodct.org.