As LGBTQ+ History Month unfolds across the country, community centers are celebrating the legacy of advocacy, resilience and progress that has shaped generations. This October, many are also honoring that history in another meaningful way: by helping save lives.

Through a growing national partnership between the American Red Cross and CenterLink, LGBTQ+ community centers are bringing people together to host blood drives that help to strengthen the nation's blood supply while creating welcoming spaces for service and connection. What began as a shared commitment to community care has become a nationwide movement, with LGBTQ+ centers across the country uniting around a common goal: ensuring patients have access to lifesaving blood when they need it most.

At the heart of that effort are volunteers and community leaders like Cass Helm of Columbus, Ohio, and Hilary Otey of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Their stories demonstrate how local leadership and small acts of generosity can combine to create a powerful national impact.

Since 2024, 67 CenterLink-affiliated centers have hosted 103 blood drives, collecting more than 2,000 blood donations, including more than 450 first-time donors. Those numbers continue to grow as additional centers join the effort.

For Cass, Deputy Director of Stonewall Columbus and chair of CentersLead, a group of volunteer leaders coordinating the national partnership, the blood drive initiative reflects values that have long defined the LGBTQ+ community.

“A lot of my life has been shaped by community,” Cass said. “Showing up for people, creating spaces where people feel welcome, and helping others feel seen and supported.”

At Stonewall Columbus, those values are on display during every blood drive. The organization hosts several drives each year, intentionally creating an atmosphere that is welcoming, affirming and centered on community connection. Donors often arrive alongside friends, partners and co-workers, transforming what might otherwise feel like an individual activity into a collective act of service.

“What makes our drives special is that they reflect the values of our community: inclusion, visibility and service,” Cass said.

The partnership between CenterLink and the Red Cross was formalized in 2024 and focuses on expanding opportunities for service, increasing awareness around blood donation, and strengthening community engagement. The October campaign is particularly meaningful because it combines celebration with service. Community members can commemorate LGBTQ+ History Month while helping address a critical need for blood donations during a period when school-hosted blood drives are not yet operating at full capacity.

For many participants, the opportunity to donate carries special significance.

In 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration updated blood donation eligibility guidance, eliminating policies based on sexual orientation and allowing more healthy people to be considered for donation based on individual risk factors. For many LGBTQ+ individuals, the change opened the door to participation in ways that had not always been possible.

Cass has witnessed that impact firsthand. “One of the most meaningful aspects of our drives has been seeing members of the LGBTQ+ community donate blood for the first time,” Cass said. “For many, blood donation was something they had been unable to do under previous eligibility guidelines.”

Watching those first-time donors roll up their sleeves, often after years of waiting for the opportunity, has become one of the most rewarding parts of the initiative. “Those moments demonstrate how powerful inclusion can be,” said Cass.

More than 800 miles away in Minnesota, Hilary sees the same spirit at work through Queermunity, an organization she co-founded with her wife in 2024. Together they are raising three children, caring for a lively household of pets, and helping build community connections across the Twin Cities.

Hilary's commitment to blood donation is deeply personal. She has spent her career working in social and health justice initiatives and previously volunteered with the Red Cross as an HIV prevention peer educator. But her understanding of the importance of blood donations became even more profound when one of her children required transfusions to live.  

“I had a child with cancer who needed multiple lifesaving blood transfusions,” Hilary shared. “I'm committed to helping ensure the vital medicine of blood is available to those who need it.”

Today, Queermunity hosts blood drives as part of the CenterLink initiative, creating events that blend community celebration with a lifesaving purpose. Some drives have featured movie or music themes, and an upcoming event will include Halloween costumes.

“These blood drives are social and community events along with a goal,” Hilary said. That combination of fun, inclusivity and purpose has become a hallmark of many CenterLink-affiliated drives nationwide.

For Hilary, the partnership also represents an opportunity to celebrate progress while continuing to educate others. “The updated donor eligibility guidance creates a chance to share the story of changing policies and to highlight the contributions LGBTQ+ people make to the health and wellbeing of their broader communities,” said Hilary.

Cass agrees. “For the LGBTQ+ community, it sends a powerful message that everyone should have the opportunity to participate in acts of service and civic engagement.”

During LGBTQ+ History Month, that message resonates beyond any single blood drive. It is a reminder that history is not only something to celebrate. It is also something to build, one act of service at a time.

Information specific to blood donation and the LGBTQ+ community can be found on the LGBTQ+ Donors page.