Give Blood, Save Lives at the Cedar Key Community Drive

Cedar Key, Fla. - What difference can a single donation make? One figure frequently cited is that one pint of blood can save up to three lives, since it can provide three lifesaving products: red blood cells, plasma and platelets. But that only scratches the surface of the impact. Those three people may have children, brothers, sisters or parents. There may be friends, classmates or coworkers, who will all be affected because a life was saved because one person made the decision to donate blood. A one-hour investment of time can have a far-reaching influence. Be a life saver and a life changer, donate blood today.

LifeSouth and the community of Cedar Key invite you to be a part of saving lives when they team up to host a blood drive on Friday, February 15 at the High School between the hours of 9 a.m. to Noon and at City Hall between the hours of 1 p.m. and 5 p.m.

"Seventeen percent of non-donors say `they never thought about it,` as the main reason for not giving," said Clay Gibbons, District Community Development Coordinator for LifeSouth. "We hope everyone will think about saving lives and donate blood at the community drive."

All who donate will a recognition item and a complimentary cholesterol screening. Donors are also entered in a drawing to win an iPad Mini. Drawing for the iPad Mini is on February 28th. Donors must be at least 16 years old, weigh 110 pounds or more, and have photo I.D. Sixteen-year-old donors must have signed parental consent. For more information about becoming a donor or about blood drives in your area, call LifeSouth toll-free at (888) 795-2707 or visit http://www.lifesouth.org .

LifeSouth is the sole blood supplier for 39 medical facilities in 17 counties in North Central Florida including Shands at UF, the VA Medical Center, and North Florida Regional Medical Center. LifeSouth is a nonprofit, volunteer blood center supplying 128 medical centers in Florida, Alabama and Georgia.