Find a Blood Drive
Find a Blood Drive
CALLAO, Mo. (June 17, 2019) — The American Red Cross is teaming up with the Callao Shamrocks 4-H Club to host a blood drive Thursday, June 27 from 2-6:30 p.m. at Callao Christian Church Family Life Center, 119 W. 2nd St., in Callao.
This drive is especially important to 19-year-old Rebekah Seipel. Rebekah has attended blood drives hosted by the Shamrocks 4-H Club since 2005. She would hang out playing board and card games with her friends. Her mother Cherie coordinated the blood drives, while her father Michael donated blood. In recent years, Rebekah would greet donors and also inquire about being able to donate blood. In December 2018 she attempted to donate, but was unable to due to a recent ear surgery. This year, with a clean bill of health, Rebekah is anxious and excited to make her first-ever blood donation.
“A great result from our 4-H Club hosting blood drives is that kids learn from an early age the importance of donating blood,” said Cherie. “Often, their first time giving blood is during a club hosted drive with their 4-H friends nearby supporting them. Many of our past 4-H’ers come back now that they are adults and continue to donate blood at our blood drive as well as others in the area.”
On June 11, the American Red Cross launched the Missing Types campaign to raise awareness for lifesaving blood donations and urge the public to make an appointment to give blood this summer.
During the Missing Types campaign, the letters A, B and O – the letters representing the main blood groups – are disappearing from brands, social media pages, signs and websites to illustrate the critical role blood donors play in helping patients. When the letters A, B and O vanish from everyday life, the gaps are striking. And when A, B, O and AB blood types go missing from hospital shelves, patient care and medical treatments are affected.
Those with types O, A negative and B negative blood are encouraged to make a Power Red donation at this blood drive. Power Red donors give a concentrated dose of red blood cells during a single donation, allowing them to maximize their impact. During this type of donation, red blood cells are separated from other blood components, and the plasma and platelets are safely and comfortably returned to the donor.
Every two seconds in the United States blood is needed to respond to patient emergencies, including accident and burn victims, heart surgery and organ transplant patients, and those receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or sickle cell disease. The Red Cross must collect more than 13,000 blood and platelet donations every day for the patients at about 2,500 hospitals nationwide.
How to donate blood
Simply download the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit RedCrossBlood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver’s license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age in most states (16 with parental consent where allowed by state law), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.
Blood and platelet donors can save time at their next donation by using RapidPass to complete their pre-donation reading and health history questionnaire online, on the day of their donation, from a computer or mobile device. To get started and learn more, visit RedCrossBlood.org/RapidPass and follow the instructions on the site.
About the American Red Cross
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross
is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.