Donors encouraged to ‘Bleed for the Throne’ in April

ALBANY – The American Red Cross encourages eligible donors to give blood or platelets during National Volunteer Month this April. Eligible donors of all blood types – especially type O – are needed to help ensure blood products are available for patients this spring.

Donors who come to donate by April 30 will be automatically entered for a chance to win a full-size iron throne from HBO’s “Game of Thrones.” Terms and conditions apply and are available at RedCrossBlood.org/HBOGameofThrones. Additionally, all presenting donors April 11-30, will receive a commemorative “Bleed for the Throne” poster, while supplies last, and automatically be entered in the iron throne sweepstakes.

Nearly half of the public knows someone who has been helped by a blood transfusion. For many volunteer blood donors, like Gail Wright, that personal connection serves as an inspiration to give.

Wright’s brother was involved in a serious motorcycle accident in 1982 and needed several blood transfusions during his four-month recovery. She lived more than 120 miles away at the time. Unable to be near him, she decided she could help by donating blood. Wright has continued to donate and recently completed her 11th gallon of donated blood – 88 lifesaving donations.

Volunteer donors are the only source of blood products for those in need of transfusions, and the Red Cross salutes the blood and platelet donors who help fulfill its lifesaving mission. While donors of all blood types are needed, the Red Cross currently has a severe shortage of type O blood donations and urges type O donors to give.

Donors can make an appointment to help save lives by downloading the free Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).

To celebrate the final season of “Game of Thrones,” HBO and the American Red Cross have partnered to encourage fans and donors to show their bravery and valor by bleeding #ForTheThrone. Many answered the call to give earlier this year, and much like the show, embarking on its final season, the fight for the living isn’t over.

Upcoming area blood donation opportunities include:

— Friday: 1-5 p.m., Walmart Supercenter 1072, 1830 Highway 82 West, Tifton;

— Monday: 1-6 p.m., First Baptist Church, 402 S. Merrimac Drive, Fitzgerald;

— Monday: 3-7 p.m., Northside Baptist Church of Tifton, 4605 Murray Ave., Tifton;

— Tuesday: 1-6 p.m., Cordele Community Clubhouse, 108 15th Ave., Cordele;

— April 11: noon-6 p.m., First United Methodist, 408 Second St. Southeast, Moultrie;

— April 12: 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Dougherty Comprehensive High School, 1800 Pierce Ave., Albany;

— April 12: 12:30-5:30 p.m., Tift Regional Medical Center, 901 East 18th St., Tifton;

— April 16: noon-6 p.m., Tifton Methodist Church, 107 West 12th St., Tifton;

— April 18: 10 a.m.-2 p.m., 2-6 p.m., Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital, 417 Third Ave., Albany;

— April 19: 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Cook County High School, 9900 Highway 37, Adel;

— April 25: 2-7 p.m., Byne Memorial Baptist Church, 2832 Ledo Road, Albany;

— April 27: 10 a.m.-3 p.m., Friendship Baptist Church, 400 Pine Ave., Albany;

— April 30: noon-5 p.m., Albany Mall, 2601 Dawson Road, Albany;

— May 1: 2-6 p.m., Albany Area YMCA, 1701 Gillionville Road, Albany.

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid, and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, visit redcross.org or cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit on Twitter at @RedCross.