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Blood bank, Domino's team up to reward donors
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More from Local NewsIt's nearly Memorial Day weekend, and with it comes a shortage of blood reserves and donors.
"People get really busy, and there are less blood drives," said Scott Edward, donor recruitment director of United Blood Services for the Central Coast region.
Edward, 32, said summertime is the worst for blood banks because of "increased traffic and increased risk of accidents."
"It has a dramatic effect on the blood supply," Edward said.
The nonprofit blood bank's Central Coast region teamed up with Domino's Pizza to launch the "3,000 Pint Memorial Day Challenge" last week. The goal is to collect 3,000 pints of blood before the start of the weekend.
Blood donors through June 9 will receive a certificate for a free one-topping medium pizza at participating Domino's outlets.
Organizations like United Blood suffer when schools let out for summer. A large portion of donations comes from students, Edward said, and lots of people go on vacation.
"People become very busy," Edward said.
The Central Coast region serves 20 hospitals, providing stored blood to them on request.
"We're the only establishment providing blood to these hospitals," Edward said.
Edward said the region needs about 270 pints of blood per day to keep up with demand.
Edward said he's hopeful that the 3,000-pint goal will be reached by Friday.
"The only way to have the blood there is by volunteer blood donors coming and donating," Edward said.
For more information on donating, call 800-715-3699 or visit http://www.unitedbloodservices.org.
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