Los Alamos Vitalant Urges Donations, Drives Scheduled Across County

Vitalant, the community blood center that coordinates donation drives in Los Alamos and White Rock, is calling on residents to give blood during National Blood Donor Month in January to bolster supplies ahead of a season that typically sees shortages. The organization stages drives at senior centers, churches, the teen center and on its mobile unit, and has specific January dates planned for both towns.

Vitalant Case Manager Heidi Chase emphasized the stakes. "Individuals are encouraged to donate during January to help ensure that hospitals have the necessary blood supplies for patients in need," she said. Chase also highlighted how common transfusions are. "One in seven people entering a hospital will need a blood transfusion," Chase said. "The average transfusion size is 3 units of blood."

The need is constant. Every two seconds someone in the United States requires blood, yet only 3 percent of people eligible to donate do so. The minimum age to donate is 16 and there is no maximum age, and organizers say recent changes to eligibility rules have made donating easier for many community members.

Local donors can visit drives scheduled for January. On Friday, January 9, a drive will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Bryce Avenue Presbyterian Church at 333 Bryce Avenue in White Rock. First Baptist Church at 2200 Diamond Drive in Los Alamos will host drives on Thursday, January 15 from noon to 6 p.m. and on Friday, January 16 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Walk ins are welcome and appointments can be scheduled by calling 877.258.4825 or by visiting vitalant.org.

As an additional incentive, donors who opt in during January will be entered for a chance to win one of 26 prepaid five hundred dollar gift cards redeemable in the Vitalant Donor Rewards store. Vitalant coordinates drives across local venues to make donation as convenient as possible for older residents, working families and teens.

For Los Alamos County the local blood supply is not just a hospital statistic, it is a matter of community resilience. Blood supports surgeries, trauma care and long term treatment for chronic conditions. Broad participation reduces pressure on regional hospitals and improves equity by expanding the racial and blood type diversity of available donations. Local health officials and community groups are encouraged to promote and participate in the January drives to help ensure that needed products are on hand when neighbors require them.