Turnout a Success Ahead of National Blood Donor Month

Have you made a resolution to donate blood in the New Year?

January is National Blood Donor Month, the perfect time to resolve to be a regular blood donor!  Extreme winter weather and seasonal illnesses often make it difficult for the Red Cross to maintain a sufficient blood supply at this time of year.  Healthy, eligible donors are urged to give blood this January!

To that end, nearly 100 people capped off 2015 by donating blood in honor of Evan Minor, who was diagnosed with Acute T-Cell Lymphoblastic Leukemia last March.  The amount exceeded the goal set for a special Red Cross blood drive, held on December 16^th at St. Alphonsus Church in Norwalk.

Dad – Dan Minor, Evan, Mom – Kristi and brother Ian

Evan has received more than 20 units of various blood products, according to his mother, Kristi Minor.  Kristi says more than 90% of Evan’s bone marrow was cancerous at the time of his diagnosis.  He has received support from many people in the community and on Facebook.

The need for blood donations is ongoing.  You can make an appointment to donate blood by logging onto redcrossblood.org.  And you can speed up the process by visiting the Red Cross Rapid Pass website.   Donors can answer questions online on the day of their appointment, before heading to the donation center. Visit redcrossblood.org/rapidpass to learn more.

Blood donors with the most recent version of the Red Cross Blood Donor App can now view their health history information, including blood pressure, hemoglobin levels and pulse rate, on their digital donor ID card within the app. The donor card in the app can also be used as a donor’s official form of identification when donating. Download the app by texting “BLOODAPP” to 90999 or searching “American Red Cross” in app stores.