Memorial Blood Centers Report Urgent Need for Blood
In the summer months, getting people to donate blood can be challenging.
“And this year is no exception, amid the coronavirus pandemic and now amid the 4th of July holiday as well,” said Erica Buege, a communications specialist with Memorial Blood Centers.
She says MBC currently has less than a three-day supply of all blood types, which is why they’re putting out the call for donors over the 4th of July weekend.
“So many blood drive cancellations due to COVID in the past months have really impacted the supply,” Buege said. “Cause more than half of the blood that we collect comes from those drives.”
Yet there are still some people who aren’t letting a pandemic — or summer vacation plans — prevent them from donating.
“Right now I’ve been coming much more frequently because the need is great,” said Colleen Bocchi of Minnetonka. She stopped into MBC’s Plymouth location Wednesday morning to donate platelets.
Colleen Bocchi of Minnetonka donates platelets at Memorial Blood Centers Plymouth location.
“I’ve been doing it for a while,” she said.
As a way to thank her and other donors for their generosity, MBC is giving out free T-shirts with the phrase “Saving Lives Six Feet Apart,” while supplies last.
However, Bocchi will be the first to admit that a free shirt wasn’t her primary motivator.
“In our family we’ve had several cancer patients, and those are some of the people who benefit from having platelet donations,” she said. “So that’s a real big motivator for me.”
MBC also has safeguards in place like temperature checks and mask requirements to alleviate concerns people may have about catching COVID-19.
Meanwhile, MBC officials hope that other people will follow Bocchi’s lead.
“It can benefit several people for each time that you donate,” Bocchi said.
