A different kind of disaster - the need for blood

Elvis J. Brassfield's 2 Gallon pin

On Friday I contributed a "double red cell" donation to the local Red Cross. Summer is a slow time for blood donations and this year they were already low due to decreased donations in prior months. Double red cell donation give people a chance to donate 2 pints of just the red blood cells. It takes a little bit longer than a regular 1 pint whole blood donation, but you can wait twice as long between donations.

I already posted a photo of this artifact last November, but here it is again. It is a 2 gallon pin that apparently belonged to Elvis J. Brassfield dated June 19, 1973.

From www.redcrossblood.org

The Red Cross has issued an appeal for blood donors of all types due to a critical blood shortage across our nation.

In May and June, donations were at the lowest level the Red Cross has seen in this timeframe in over a dozen years, while demand for blood products remained steady. Because of that, the Red Cross needs blood donors now more than ever. All types are needed, but especially O negative, which can be used to treat any patient.

We highly encourage all type O negative blood donors who meet the eligibility requirements to double the difference by becoming a double red cell donor.  If eligible, you can give to give two donations at once.

The Red Cross also posted a special message from Weather Channel meteorologist Jim Cantore on YouTube titled A different kind of disaster.
Check out the video after the jump...