Blood donors needed Monday

A blood drive sponsored by Kiwanis Club of Pike County will be held Monday, Dec. 3 at senior citizen center on Highway 19 from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. The American Red Cross is the nation’s largest blood collection organization, supplying more than 40 percent of the blood and blood products used in our country. During winter months, blood donations drop, causing a critical need for donors. Each year, the volunteers and employees of American Red Cross Blood Services collect approximately 6.5 million units of blood, from roughly 4 million generous volunteer blood donors. From these donations, the Red Cross is able to distribute around 9.5 million blood products each year, including 6 million units of red blood cells, to patients at approximately 3,000 hospitals and transfusion centers across the country.Blood donors are ordinary people ‘“ high school students, factory and office workers, business executives, parents and grandparents, and people from every walk of life. But they share one thing ‘“ a generous spirit, a desire to give back to their community and help others. Blood donors play an integral role in the delivery of modern healthcare. Many life-saving medical treatments and procedures involve blood transfusions and would not be possible without a safe and reliable blood supply.