Please Donate Blood in Commemoration of 9/11 Victims

NEW YORK, Aug. 25 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- New York Blood Center (NYBC), serving more than 20 million people in New York City, Long Island, the Hudson Valley, New Jersey, and parts of Connecticut and Pennsylvania, calls upon the communities it serves to please donate blood in honor and remembrance of the thousands of men, women, and children affected by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.  Each pint of blood donated can potentially save the lives of three people through the use of blood and blood products.

The need for blood is constant due its shelf life of just 42 days.  Approximately five million Americans receive blood transfusions every year, and the only place to get this precious resource is from the generosity of volunteer blood donors.  Please give the gift of life so that others may live.  Patients need your help, as do those who now suffer with debilitating illness after bravely serving on 9/11 and during the months and years thereafter.  Donating blood is also a thoughtful way to honor family members, friends and loved ones.

New York City Federal Employees will be donating blood in Manhattan on September 8th, 9th, and 10th at 26 Federal Plaza and on September 10th at 201 Varick Street in remembrance of the lives that were lost on 9/11.

Please donate at a blood drive listed below or to find the nearest blood drive or donor center location, call 1-800-933-BLOOD (2566) or visit www.nybloodcenter.org.

Any company, community organization, place of worship, or individual may host a blood drive.  NYBC also offers special community service scholarships for students who organize community blood drives during the summer.  Blood donors receive free mini-medical exams on site including information about their temperature, pulse rate, blood pressure and hemoglobin level.  Eligible donors include those people at least age 16 (with parental permission or consent), who weigh a minimum of 110 pounds, are in good health and meet all Food & Drug Administration and NY or NJ State Department of Health donor criteria.  People over 75 may donate with a doctor's note.

About New York Blood Center:  New York Blood Center (NYBC) is one of the nation's largest non-profit, community-based blood centers. NYBC has been providing blood, transfusion products and services to hospitals serving more than 20 million people in New York City, Long Island, the Hudson Valley, New Jersey, and parts of Connecticut and Pennsylvania.  NYBC is also home to the Lindsley F. Kimball Research Institute and the National Cord Blood Program at the Howard P. Milstein National Cord Blood Center, the world's largest public cord blood bank.  NYBC provides medical services and programs (Clinical, Transfusion, and Hemophilia Services) through our medical professionals along with consultative services in transfusion medicine. Please visit us on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/newyorkbloodcenter.  Follow us on Twitter: @NYBloodCenter.  

SOURCE New York Blood Center