BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//jEvents 2.0 for Joomla//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/Chicago BEGIN:STANDARD DTSTART:20201101T010000 RDATE:20210314T030000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0600 TZNAME:America/Chicago CST END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT DTSTART:20200908T000000 RDATE:20201101T010000 TZOFFSETFROM:-0600 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:America/Chicago CDT END:DAYLIGHT END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT UID:16bd2ad4b728599cbc39c14ea931b747 CATEGORIES:Community Calendar SUMMARY:Red Cross Blood Drives DESCRIPTION;ENCODING=QUOTED-PRINTABLE:
Help tackle the need by giving blood with the Red Cross
Upcomin g Red Cross blood donation opportunities Sept. 1-15
9/3: 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., Dan Hecht Chevrolet -showroom, South Route 45, Effingham
9/9: 2 p.m. - 6 p.m., Ramsey Christian Church, 206 South Jef ferson
9/10: 1 p.m. - 5 p.m., Flora First United Methodist Church, 103 E. 3rd Street, Flora
9/14: 2 p.m. - 7 p.m., Dutc h Prairie Community, 983 N 1300th St, Shobonier
9/14: 12 p.m. - 6 p.m., Vandalia Moose Lodge, 328 South 3 rd Street
As fall approaches, the American Red Cross urges eligible donors to help end t he ongoing critical need for blood and kick off the season with a blood or platelet donation. The Red Cross needs donors of all blood types to give no w and help ensure lifesaving transfusions are on the sidelines for those wh o rely on them.
Whil e summer winds down, the Red Cross is concerned that the rise in COVID-19 c ases due to the delta variant and a potentially active hurricane season may further challenge the ability to collect and meet hospital demand. In rece nt weeks, the Red Cross has seen blood donor turnout decline by nearly 10% while hospital demand continues to outpace donations. This decline is belie ved to be due to multiple reasons, including the continued effects of the p andemic on blood drive cancellations and donor availability as well as back -to-school preparations for many families.
In addition, September is Sickle Cell Awareness month. Tanjila Bolden was diagnosed at 18 months with sickle cell disease. Both of her pa rents carried the sickle cell trait, but Tanjila was the only one in her fa mily to have the full-blown disease, which occurs in about 1 out of every 3 65 African American births. Those with the disease have red blood cells tha t are crescent- (or sickle-) shaped. As travel through the blood vessels, t he sickle cells clog blood vessels. The condition requires frequent blood t ransfusions.
After st ruggling through many hospital visits, the native of Houston earned her hig h school diploma while living in St. Louis, where she moved when she was 8 years old. Tanjila’s high school graduation gift was a trip back to Houston , where she ended up being admitted to the hospital and told she had to hav e an exchange transfusion – the complete replacement of all her blood. Doct ors said that while the procedure could kill Tanjila, doing nothing would d efinitely kill her. She chose to go through with the procedure, which meant sitting with limited pain medicine for hours as a machine slowly removed a ll her blood and replaced it with fresh donor blood. The transfusion saved her life.
“People do not realize the power that is in blood—that the one bag of your blood you donate can save the lives of three people. I was wheeled into the room wher e the procedure took place—unable to walk and in a crisis. After the transf usion, I walked out of the room.”
Make a game plan to donate – patients are relying on the kin dness of blood and platelet donors for their continued treatment.< span style="background-color: initial;"> Schedule an appointment to give blood or platelets by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.or g, calling 1-800-RE D CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or enabling the Blood Donor Skill on any Alexa Ech o device.
Donors wh o come to give throughout the month of September will receive a free haircu t coupon by email from Sport Clips Haircuts.
Health insights for donors
At a time when health information has never been more important, the Red Cross is scr eening all blood, platelet and plasma donations from self-identified Africa n American donors for the sickle cell trait. This additional screening will provide Black donors with an additional health insight and help the Red Cr oss identify compatible blood types more quickly to help patients with sick le cell disease. Blood transfusion is an essential treatment for those with sickle cell disease, and blood donations from individuals of the same race , ethnicity and blood type have a unique ability to help patients fighting sickle cell disease.
Donors can expect to receive sickle cell trait screening results, if ap plicable, within one to two weeks through the Red Cross Blood Donor App and the online donor portal at RedCrossBlood.org.
Blood drive safety
Each Red Cross blood drive and donation center follows the highest standards of safety and infection control, and additional precautions – including face masks for donors and staff, regardless of vaccinat ion status – have been implemented to help protect the health of all those in attendance. Donors are asked to schedule an appointment prior to arrivin g at the drive.
Ho w to donate blood
Blood and platelet donors can save time at their next donatio n by using RapidPass® to complete their pre-donation reading and health history questionnaire online, on the day of their donation, before arriving at the blood drive. To get started, follow the instructions at RedCrossBlood.org/RapidPa ssor use the Blood Donor App.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Re
d Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; suppl
ies about 40% of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; distri
butes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military membe
rs and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that
depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver
its mission. For more information, please visitredcross.org