Accessibility Statement

First-Ever Blood Drive at KFC Yum! Center is Feb. 23 Feb. 16, 2016

Donors Will Receive T-Shirt, Have a Chance to Win NCAA Tickets and Get to Shoot on the Floor

KBC will host a blood drive at KFC Yum! Center Feb. 23 from noon to 6 p.m.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Cardinal fans can shoot around in the home of Cardinal basketball and also save the life of a Kentucky patient during Kentucky Blood Center’s first-ever blood drive at the KFC Yum! Center on Tuesday, Feb. 23. 

The blood drive, which will be on the floor of the arena, is noon to 6 p.m. Donors will have the opportunity to shoot some hoops prior to giving blood and will receive a “My blood type is Cardinal Red” T-shirt. Everyone who registers at the drive will be eligible to win a pair of tickets to the NCAA South Regional games at the KFC YUM! Center on March 24 and 26.

“We are excited to host the first-ever blood drive at the KFC Yum! Center. It’s a fun way to save lives and show your Cardinal team spirit. Blood collected at this event, like all of blood donated with Kentucky Blood Center, will help save the lives of Kentucky patients. We appreciate the KFC Yum! Center letting us provide this unique life-saving opportunity to Louisville blood donors,” said William Reed, Kentucky Blood Center’s President and CEO. 

Donors should access the arena through the Main Street entrance. Appointments aren’t necessary but can be made by visiting kybloodcenter.org or calling 800.775.2522.

The blood center’s Middletown Donor Center on Shelbyville Road is usually open on Tuesdays, but it will be closed that day so staff can help out at the blood drive at the KFC Yum! Center. 

Blood donors must be 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. 

About Kentucky Blood Center

Founded nearly 50 years ago, Kentucky Blood Center (KBC) is the largest independent, full-service, non-profit blood center in Kentucky. Licensed by the FDA, KBC’s sole purpose is to collect, process and distribute blood for patients in Kentucky hospitals.

All blood that is donated with KBC is returned to the Beaumont Donor Center where it is processed, prepared and stored for shipment to Kentucky hospitals.

Blood needs are ongoing. Red cells last only 42 days and must be continually replenished to adequately support Kentucky hospitals. Statistics show that one in seven hospital patients will require blood transfusions during their stay. However, only 37 percent of the population is eligible to donate blood and less than 10 percent does. All blood types are needed, and there is a particular need for type O negative blood since it is the “universal donor” and needed in emergencies when the patient’s blood type is unknown.

The blood already on the shelf is the blood used in an emergency. That’s why KBC is always encouraging people to donate blood.