Donor Appreciation Days: KBC Offering $20 Amazon Gift Cards July 6, 2023

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Donors are needed at Kentucky Blood Center to replenish the blood supply following the Independence Day holiday.

The combination of a light mobile collections schedule and low donor turnout around the July 4 holiday has dried up the local blood supply. KBC is calling on eligible donors to schedule an appointment at one of its eight donor centers over the next couple of days to ensure blood products can be supplied to 70-plus hospitals in Kentucky. For stepping up, all donors who give blood at a KBC donors center July 6 or 7 will walk away with a $20 Amazon gift card.

KBC’s Donor Appreciation Days are taking place this summer to counter historically poor turnout weeks during a period of traditionally high need. The Independence Day holiday week traditionally puts a strain on the blood supply because of poor collections and an uptick in trauma-related transfusions. Many traumas require more than 50 unit of blood.

Donors can schedule an appointment at a KBC donor center by visiting kybloodcenter.org/donate/donor-center-locations, clicking on a donor center link below or calling 800.775.2522. All donor centers are open Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Appointments are preferred but walk-ins are welcome.

Blood collected at KBC saves patients in Kentucky who require products for surgeries, diseases like cancer, traumas, organ transplants, premature births and so much more.

Donors must be at least 17 years old (16 with parental consent), weigh at least 110 pounds, be in general good health, show a photo I.D. and meet additional requirements. Sixteen-year-old donors must have a signed parental permission slip, which can be found at kybloodcenter.org.