We were "Out For Blood" and we got it!
The 5th annual Out For Blood drive lived up to its
name collecting 62 pints of lifesaving blood that will touch as
many as 186 patient lives. The drive, sponsored by Binnie Media stations 107.5
Frank FM, 99.9 The Wolf and 106.3 The Bone, had multiple locations in Windham
and Portland and their listeners showed up to support them!
“The
stations of Binnie Media Maine are proud to support the Red Cross in making
sure lifesaving blood is available when it is needed,” said Michael Czarnecki,
Vice President of Programming, Binnie Media. “There is no other source of blood
than healthy, volunteer donors and I am incredibly proud of our teams and
deeply grateful to our listeners who showed up to support our fifth annual Out for
Blood drive.”
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| Leif Erickson and Eddie Scott |
Leif Erickson, mid-day host on 107.5 Frank FM,
was on hand in the morning at the Portland Elks Club location
encouraging "Frank Nation” listeners to join him there and roll up a
sleeve to keep the blood supply strong. One person who took Leif up on his
challenge was Red Cross Account Executive Eddie Scott. His donation marked a
major milestone.
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| Eddie Scott |
Born and raised in Ireland, Eddie has lived in the United States for more than 17 years. He was able to donate blood for the first time at Wednesday’s drive due to recent FDA eligibility changes on variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) – related to mad cow disease. This change eliminates the deferral period for people who have spent time in the United Kingdom, France or Ireland between 1980-2001 and were previously considered to have been exposed to a potential risk of vCJD transmission. This restriction was one of many layers of safety in place to help protect the blood supply and health of valued donors.
This eligibility change will potentially impact
hundreds of thousands of people, just like Eddie. The Red Cross encourages
individuals to give who have never tried to donate blood due to concerns over
vCJD and believe they may now be eligible. To learn more about the FDA’s new
guidelines visit RedCrossBlood.org.
On another table in Portland, 95-year-old Philip
Foley was rolling up his sleeve, but not for the first time. Philip is no
stranger to our Red Cross staff. Not only do they know him as a veteran and
long-time mail carrier for the U.S. Postal Service in Portland, he’s also been
a regular blood donor since 1946 – rarely missing an appointment. Just think of
how many lives Philip has helped save in 80 years of blood donation!
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| Philip Foley |
The
North Windham Veterans Center proved to be a hotspot for donations too.
Veterans Arn Heggers, Linwood Bailey and Tom Therioult welcomed donors in with
enthusiasm, and shared stories of donating blood dating back to their time in
the service
The
Wolf's morning show host, Michelle Taylor, stopped by to thank donors for
supporting the station's mission to save lives. Blood is perishable and cannot
be stockpiled. As the effects of Hurricane Ian continue to be felt in the
Southeast and along the East Coast, the Red Cross urges donors of all blood
types to give blood now to stop potential disruptions to patient care
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| Michelle Taylor |
There are blood drives happening across our region and the country every day, to find one near you visit RedCrossBlood.org and type in your zip code.
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