By Communications and Marketing Intern, Alessandra Pacheco
| Right now, blood and platelet donations are being sent to hospitals faster than donations are coming in. In fact, donations have fallen short of expectations for the past two months, resulting in about 61,000 fewer donations than what is needed.
Because of this, the American Red Cross has issued an emergency call for blood and blood platelets, and it is important for all eligible donors to schedule an appointment to donate blood.
If you are still looking for a reason to donate, here are a few:
As a blood donor, you would be helping people get the blood products they need. And, since a single blood donation can potentially save up to three lives, you would also be helping to save lives. Like Daisy, who needed a lifesaving blood transfusion minutes after she was born.
In the womb, Daisy’s intestines developed outside of her body. Since then she has battled multiple complications, including cancer, and has gone through so many surgeries, transplants, and blood transfusions that her mother, Joey, has, “lost count of all the blood transfusions her daughter has received.” 
Here at the Red Cross, we hear about stories like Daisy’s all the time but, there are even more reasons to donate. In fact, right now we’re inviting all eligible donors to donate blood at the 36th Annual KLOS Blood Drive, on Wednesday July 19 thru Saturday July 22, at several locations throughout Southern California. At designated KLOS Blood Drives, eligible donors will not only be helping people in need, but all presenting blood donors will receive an exclusive 36th Annual KLOS Blood Drive T-shirt (while supplies last), plus a voucher (while supplies last) to attend one of this summer’s hottest events – Sammy Hagar & The Circle, with Collective Soul!
If you are interested in donating blood, scheduling an appointment is always highly recommended. You can schedule an appointment by calling1-800-RED CROSS or by visiting RedCrossblood.org. If you are specifically interested in scheduling an appointment for the KLOS Blood Drive, please visit RedCrossblood.org and use sponsor code KLOS.
And, to all our blood donors out there, thank you for donating and helping to save lives!
Alessandra Pacheco will be a Senior at Da Vinci High School. She hopes to become an accomplished author and editor, and enjoys watching basketball. This is Alessandra’s first year interning with the American Red Cross.
