Vitalant hosts giveaway for blood donors | News

Vitalant, one of the nation’s largest independent blood providers, is giving blood donors the chance to win a gift card through its Celestial Giveaway. 

“We are trying to thank people who give blood in March by entering them automatically into the Celestial Giveaway,” said Sue Thew, communications manager for Vitalant in Arizona. “It’s an opportunity for every donor who gives blood with Vitalant March 3 through March 31 to be automatically entered into a drawing for one of four $5,000 gift cards.” 

The four winners will be chosen April 4 and will receive the gifts through the emails they use for their donation. 

The importance of the giveaway, according to Thew, is to remind the public of the ongoing need for blood donations. Vitalant supplies blood to all Maricopa County hospitals and 90% of those statewide.

“In Arizona alone, more than 600 blood donations are needed every single day to meet the needs of the 65 hospitals that we serve,” Thew said. 

“We’ve struggled in some situations to get many of the organizations back who were regular blood drive sponsors prior to the pandemic,” Thew said. 

“But now that the height of the pandemic is behind us, hospital blood usage has increased back to pre-pandemic levels. So, people must think about getting back into the routine of donating blood because there are lots of people who are depending upon you and me to donate. 

“So, it’s just really wonderful that people would think about taking an hour of their day to stop by Vitalant blood drive or donor center and give a pint of blood. That, in turn, can be separated into components to help save two or three lives of patients in hospitals.” 

Blood has a shelf life of about 35 days, but the public shouldn’t wait until an emergency to donate.

“Tragedy strikes without a moment’s notice,” Thew said. “You never know when you’re going to find yourself in a situation where you might need a lifesaving blood transfusion. … It takes a constant, steady supply of donors to make sure that patients have the transfusions they need. We need blood for patients in hospitals, but we need to make sure it comes in at the right time because of its shelf life.” 

For those interested in donating, there are seven donor centers across the Valley, and Vitalant hosts up to 19 blood drives daily in Arizona. To find out the closest center or blood drive, Arizonans can go to Vitalant’s website and search by city or ZIP code. 

Thew does recommend that people make appointments when donating blood. That can be done on Vitalant’s website www.vitalant.org and app or by calling 1-877-258-4825. 

“When people make appointments, it helps us ensure that we’ve scheduled enough donors and we’ll have enough blood for anticipated usage by patients in the hospitals here,” Thew said. 

“It also helps donors get in and out more quickly when they make an appointment.”