Already a month in to the fourth annual “Give Your Buckeye Blood” campaign, the American Red Cross still offers people the opportunity the satisfaction of participating in a cause that saves lives, along with the chance to win Ohio State University (OSU) football tickets.
This fall region-wide blood donor campaign in Central Ohio Blood Services Region allows blood and/or platelet donors to enter to win two football tickets for each OSU home game and a grand prize pair of tickets to the Ohio State versus Michigan game on Nov. 30.
All blood drives in the central Ohio region are eligible to participate. The final date to enter the drawing is Nov. 24.
Ticket drawings will be held the Monday prior to each home game.
Donors can register for the game tickets by filling out an entry form at participating drives. All winners will be notified. Also, winner’s names and place of donation will be listed on www.redcrossblood.org/centralohio.
Walk-ins are accepted, but making an appointment is recommended. To make an appointment, call 1-800-RED-CROSS or go to http://www.redcrossblood.org/donating-blood.
Donor Recruitment Representative with the American Red Cross Bill Doehla stated, “We find that our donor-base typically drop during the summer because of vacationing and traveling.” Thus, blood donations are at a high demand during this time to compensate for the decrease in the summer months.
And while any healthy blood donation is welcomed, specifically, Hr-negative, A, D, and O-negative blood donations are especially valuable.
All donators need to bring their driver’s license or two other forms of identification with them to the blood drive, where they will be asked questions about their health history.
The whole donation takes about an hour and the actually process of drawing the blood takes approximately 6 – 10 minutes.
Every person who donates a unit of blood has potential to save three lives.
Donors can give blood Friday, Sept. 6 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Shelby High School; or Monday, Sept. 9 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Red Cross Chapter House, Mansfield; or Monday, Sept. 9 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Mansfield YMCA.
