NEW YORK- This Thanksgiving, the New York Blood Center (NYBC) is giving thanks to blood donors by providing long sleeve t-shirts to every presenting donor at all 19 area donor centers. In celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday, this promotion will be available from Sunday, November 19th to Sunday, November 26, 2023.
The holiday season is always a difficult time for the blood supply, as school breaks, family vacations and holiday travel all contribute to making blood donations less of a priority. Hospitals and patients rely upon a steady flow of volunteer donors to receive life-saving blood donations, but the past two years have brought chronic blood shortages nationwide. NYBC has seen a 50 percent decrease in youth donors since pre-pandemic.
“We are thankful for our blood donors everyday, but we’re especially grateful for those, who take the time to make the selfless act of donating blood during the busy holiday season,” said Andrea Cefarelli, Senior Vice President at New York Blood Center. “This month, we are asking all eligible blood donors to celebrate the season of giving by giving the gift of life for their fellow New Yorkers in need. We’ll even throw in a free festive long sleeve t-shirt if you donate at one of our donor centers!”
Blood donors can give every 56 days, and platelet donors can give twice per month. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently lifted several blood donor eligibility restrictions.
To make an appointment, donors can call 1-800-933-2566 or visit nybc.org. Can’t donate blood? You can still support NYBC’s mission by texting ‘NYBC’ to ‘20222’ to give $25.
