The public is invited to participate in the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s summer blood drive on Tuesday, August 12, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Dakotah! Sport and Fitness.
Blood donors are desperately needed. According to Memorial Blood Centers, the SMSC’s blood drive partner, someone in the local community needs blood every two seconds. All blood types are needed, but especially type O, the universal donor. Each pint of donated blood can potentially save as many as three lives.
In order to give blood, a donor must be healthy and:
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· weigh at least 110 pounds;
· be at least 17 years old; and
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· not have donated blood in the last 56 days.
Donors go through a brief screening process as part of the appointment. Please make a blood donation appointment by calling the SMSC Wellness Coordinators at 952-233-2965. A limited number of walk-ins will also be accepted. The entire appointment takes about an hour.
SMSC blood drives among top 20 drives for Memorial Blood Centers
The SMSC has sponsored blood drives for nearly 30 years and has held 59 blood drive events since 1998 for Minnesota-based Memorial Blood Centers, resulting in 3,456 donated units of blood. In 2013 alone, the SMSC ranked 20th in blood drive donations, with 315 units collected. It is one of only two community-sponsored blood drives in the top 20, with all of the others being corporate, college or hospital drives. An additional SMSC 2014 blood drive is scheduled for December 9.