According to Tim Paluch, PR and marketing director of LifeServe Blood Center, the campaign has already made a difference, but the need is far from over.

“We have seen a nice increase in donors since Blood Donor Days started, which is very encouraging,” Paluch said. “But we started June in a tough spot with some blood shortages in Iowa, and we need donors the rest of June to really come out to make a difference.”

Paluch explained that summer creates a perfect storm for blood centers: demand goes up just as donations go down.

“Summer is always a difficult time for maintaining the blood supply due to increased demand from hospitals, as the summer break brings more car accidents, boating accidents, fireworks accidents, and more as people are out and more active,” he said. “At the same time, donations dip because school is out — we get a lot of donations from high schools and colleges — and people take vacations and skip appointments in summer.”

That mismatch between rising need and falling supply is exactly what inspired the Blood Donor Days initiative.

“Unfortunately, hospital patients in need of lifesaving blood do not get a vacation,” Paluch said. “Which is why we started Blood Donor Days as a monthlong celebration — we want to reward our generous donors who come out during a busy time to take an hour or less and save local lives.”

A community issue

Paluch said the need for blood hits closer to home than most people think.

“The blood supply is not just a medical issue, or a LifeServe issue. It’s a community issue, because you never know when you, your family, friends, coworkers, or neighbors may need a transfusion,” he said.

Donated blood goes well beyond emergency rooms, he noted.

“Blood treats traumas, but also cancer patients who depend on transfusions to stay healthy enough to undergo difficult cancer treatments,” he added. “It goes to premature infants and mothers who went through a difficult birth experience. And more.”

The impact of a single donation is larger than many donors realize — and it stays local.

“Just one blood donation can save up to three lives in your community,” Paluch said. “LifeServe is the supplier of blood to community hospitals, so if we are collecting blood in your town, that means we are supplying the blood to the local or regional hospital there.”

Incentives bring the community together

To encourage donors during the slow summer stretch, LifeServe partnered with regional businesses to line up a slate of giveaways for June.

“For June, we worked with staff and local businesses in our entire region — which serves 175 plus hospitals in Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Illinois — to get special gifts donated to us,” Paluch said. “These businesses recognize the incredible impact and incredible need for blood right now, and are doing their part.”

The headline prize is a music festival getaway.

“Our grand prize giveaway for June is two sets of two four-day passes to Hinterland Music Festival, one of our special partners, but it’s also small businesses donating gift cards, coupons, and more,” Paluch said. “Truly a community effort for a community issue.”

Every donor who participates during Blood Donor Days also walks away with a piece of summer flair: a special neon T-shirt.

A donor who walks the walk

If there is a living example of the kind of commitment LifeServe is hoping to inspire this June, look no further than Bruce Oldson, of Fort Dodge.

A regular at the local Fort Dodge LifeServe Blood Center location, Oldson has been donating for four decades — and he shows no signs of slowing down.

“Forty years of donations,” Oldson said simply when asked what keeps him coming back. “Helps others that need it.”

His routine is as consistent as it is remarkable.

“Every other Saturday I come and donate, every 14 days,” he said.

To date, Oldson has tallied an extraordinary 77 gallons of donated blood — a number that, by LifeServe’s own measure, translates to hundreds of lives saved right here in the community.

And he’s not done yet.

“I want to see how much I can donate before I can’t,” Oldson said. “At some point — you can’t.”

Part of what keeps him returning to the Fort Dodge location, he said, is the people who greet him there.

“These are a nice bunch of folks,” he said of the LifeServe staff, “and are fun to have around.”

With June not yet over, Paluch’s message to the community was direct: the region’s hospitals are counting on local donors to close the gap left by summer travel and school breaks. Those interested in donating, entering the Hinterland Music Festival giveaway, or learning more about Blood Donor Days can contact LifeServe Blood Center to find an upcoming donation opportunity near them.

Upcoming July blood donation dates

JOHNSTON — This July, celebrate the spirit of America by helping save lives right here in your community with a blood donation.

Local opportunities will be available at the following sites:

• Trinity Regional Medical Center: 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. July 22 at 802 Kenyon Road.

• St. Olaf Lutheran Church: 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 239 N. 11th St., Fort Dodge

To schedule an appointment, visit lifeservebloodcenter.org or by call 800-287-4903.