News release from the American Red Cross of Northeast Indiana:
Run Like A Hero and help save lives
Donate blood and support organ transplant patients
(June 16, 2016) — The community is invited to give blood in honor of patients who need an organ transplant at a special American Red Cross blood drive sponsored by Run Like A Hero on Thursday, June 23, from noon to 6 p.m. at the American Red Cross Fort Wayne Blood Donation Center.
Run Like A Hero is an organization created to raise awaeness of the need for organ donations and to raise funds for transplant research. Run Like A Hero holds an annual 5K event in memory of Caden Bowles and other transplant recipients like him. Caden was born with a heart defect and received a heart transplant as an infant. By age 11, Caden needed a replacement heart transplant and unfortunately passed away while on the transplant waiting list.
Organ transplant surguries can require 10 to 40 units of blood products. Blood donations help make organ transplants posible. Run Like A Hero invites the community to donate blood on Thursday, June 23, at the Red Cross Fort Wayne Blood Donation Center, and to join the Run Like A Hero 5K walk and run on Saturday, June 25 at 9 a.m. at Summit Middle School in Fort Wayne. More details on the 5K can be found at runlikeahero.com.
“Hosting this blood drive in honor of patients who need a transplant is a wonderful way to raise awareness on the importance of blood and organ donors, as well as help local patients,” said Tracy Fox, market manager for the Red Cross.
Blood and platelet donations are needed every day for patients with many serious medical conditions. Accident and burn victims, heart surgery patients, organ transplant patients, and those receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or sickle cell disease may all need blood.
This blood drive comes at an important time of year. Blood and platelet donations often decline during the summer months when busy summer schedules and vacation plans can cause some donors to be less available to give. Additionally, blood donations at high school and college blood drives, which account for as much as 20 percent of blood donations during the school year, decline when many schools are out of session. But, the need for blood remains constant all summer long.
Run Like a Hero Blood Drive
Thursday, June 23
Noon to 6 p.m.
Red Cross Fort Wayne Blood Donation Center
1212 E. California Rd., Fort Wayne, IN 46825
To schedule an appointment, please visit https://www.redcrossblood.org/ or call 1-800-RED CROSS.
Those who come to donate between now and Sept. 5 can receive an exclusive Cedar Fair ticket offer that helps support the Red Cross, and enter to win one of two grand prize packages for four to Knott’s Berry Farm in California or Cedar Point in Ohio. Blood drive participants can go to redcrossblood.org/cedarfair to purchase discounted tickets for gate admission and enter to win one of the two grand prize packages. For each ticket purchased through the website, Cedar Fair will donate $2 to the Red Cross to support its humanitarian mission. Terms and conditions apply and are available at redcrossblood.org/cedarfair.
How to donate blood
Simply download the American Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit https://www.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 (16 with parental consent in some states), 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 donors can now 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, prior to arriving at the blood drive. To get started, 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.
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