Sickle Cell Blood Drive

Your blood can save lives. Come to give and get a $10 gift card by email thanks to Amazon and receive a limited-edition college football T-shirt, while supplies last!

when & where

Thursday, September 23, 2021
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Hall A of the Akron Urban League at 440 Vernon Odom Blvd., Akron, OH 44307

Sickle Cell is a disease that predominately impacts individuals of African descent. African American blood donors are needed to help eliminate the gap in our ability to meet hospital demand and provide the most compatible units for patients with sickle cell disease.

To schedule an appointment, please visit RedCrossBlood.org and enter sponsor code: AkronUrbanLeague or call 1-800-RED-CROSS. Please drink plenty of fluids and eat a healthy meal before your donation!

We are pleased to share that the Red Cross expanded its testing to include sickle cell trait screening on all donations from self-identified African American donors. This additional screening will help the Red Cross identify compatible blood types more quickly to help sickle cell patients and provide African American donors an additional health insight during a time when health information has never been more important.

In the U.S., it is estimated that over 100,000 people have sickle cell disease — most who are of African descent and will require regular blood transfusions to help manage their disease.

Individuals who only carry the trait but do not have sickle cell disease are eligible to donate blood.

Here’s how you can help:

• Sign up to donate at RedCrossBlood.org using sponsor code AkronUrbanLeague or via the Red Cross Blood Donor App.
• Complete your health questionnaire via RapidPass® and save time on the day of the blood drive.
• Review the Sickle Cell Trait Screening FAQs and visit RedCrossBlood.org/SCTrait to learn more.
• Spread the word and bring friends, family and colleagues to donate.

Here’s what you need to know about the sickle cell trait screening:

• Blood transfusion is an essential treatment for those with sickle cell disease, and blood donations from individuals of the same ethnicity and blood type have a unique ability to help patients fighting sickle cell disease.
• The blood donation process will not change — donations will be screened using samples obtained at the time of donation.
• There will be no charge to donors.
• Due to the anticipated high demand, appointments are highly encouraged.
• Donors can expect to receive results to their screenings within one to two weeks through our Red Cross Blood Donor App and the online donor portal at RedCrossBlood.org.
• Donors need to have a successful donation to receive the screening results.