Give The Gift Of Life Today

Have you ever given blood? Today is a great day for it since St. James Episcopal Church at 305 Main Street, Oneonta is hosting a Community Blood Drive starting at 1pm.

If you're on the fence about doing it maybe these facts from the American Red Cross will convince you:

Every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood.
More than 41,000 blood donations are needed every day.
A total of 30 million blood components are transfused each year in the U.S.
The average red blood cell transfusion is approximately 3 pints.
The blood type most often requested by hospitals is Type O.
The blood used in an emergency is already on the shelves before the event occurs.
Sickle cell disease affects more than 70,000 people in the U.S. About 1,000 babies are born with the disease each year. Sickle cell patients can require frequent blood transfusions throughout their lives.
More than 1.6 million people were diagnosed with cancer last year. Many of them will need blood, sometimes daily, during their chemotherapy treatment.
A single car accident victim can require as many as 100 pints of blood.