We were "Out For Blood" and we got it!

By Mary Brant, Regional Communications Manager

The 5^th 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.”

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.

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!

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

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.