LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky Blood Center’s “Summer of Saving” is in full swing with a chance for donors to win free Texas Roadhouse for a year by donating blood in July.

Two winners have already been selected for the first two giveaways.

Angela Torres, a Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services employee who consistently donates at KBC’s mobile drive at her workplace in Louisville, won free movie tickets for a year for her donation on May 28 (promotion was May 23–31). With 104 tickets to a local theater, Torres plans to watch plenty of movies with her two granddaughters.

The June winner of free gas for a year went to longtime donor Philip Morgan of Winchester. Morgan is a 26-year employee of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky in Georgetown, home of KBC’s largest collection of blood drives. Morgan is a frequent donor at the TMMK mobile blood drives, amassing 56 lifetime donations that’s produced more than seven gallons of blood for local patients. Morgan said the 52 $50 gift cards from Clark’s Pump-N-Shop (Marathon) will come in handy for his daily work commute between Winchester and Georgetown.

Pictures of the winners are below. 

Two more winners will be selected this summer. Donors in July will be entered to win 52 $40 Texas Roadhouse gift cards, plus all donors will receive a coupon for a free appetizer from Texas Roadhouse. In August, donors will be entered to win free groceries for a year to Kroger (or a grocery store determined by KBC in the donor’s area). All donors during the July and August giveaways will get a “Stay Peachy” T-shirt.

With the ability to donate whole blood every 56 days and platelets every 14 days, donors can give blood multiple times during the Summer of Saving giveaway and be eligible for multiple grand prizes. KBC will continue to thank its local lifesavers with gift cards during historically low-turnout periods. 

Blood donations historically dwindle during the summer because of warm-weather activities, family vacations and no school. The need for blood doesn’t take a break, however, and transfusion levels often increase as donation frequency decreases. The Summer of Saving is geared to motivate donors to give blood during the time of need with exciting money-saving giveaways and promotions.

Blood collected at KBC saves the lives of patients in Kentucky who require products for surgeries, diseases like cancer, traumas, organ transplants, premature births and so much more. Kentucky Blood Center, through the generous donation of blood from donors, provides lifesaving blood products to more than 70 hospitals in Kentucky.

All KBC locations are participating in the Summer of Saving. Donor centers, listed below, are open throughout the week and each center’s hours can be found by clicking on the links below. KBC also hosts approximately 2,000 mobile drives a year in more than 90 counties. Interested donors can visit kybloodcenter.org or call 800.775.2522 to schedule an appointment. Mobile drive locations can be found at my.kybloodcenter.org/donor/schedules/county. Appointments are preferred but walk-ins are welcome.

Blood donors must be at least 17 years old (16 with parental consent), weigh at least 110 pounds, be in good general 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.