Media Contact: Christine Welch
christine.welch@redcross.org
 

Local fire, law enforcement and military personnel compete to increase blood donations

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA, Jan. 9, 2024 — Southern California first responders’ top priority is to help others in harm’s way. For the 18th year since 2007, first responders will further their commitment to helping others and saving lives by bolstering the community’s blood supply. During the Battle of the Badges blood drive, local law and public safety agencies compete to see who can recruit the most blood donors.

Community members can join the fun and friendly competition at locations throughout Southern California by donating at a Battle of the Badges blood drive between Jan. 3 and March 31, 2024. Everyone who donates at a Battle of the Badges blood drive will receive a commemorative T-shirt, while supplies last.

More than 50,000 pints of blood have been donated in Southern California since the Battle of the Badges blood drive began in 2007 by Mahagony Thomas of the United States Probation Office. Together we can work toward our 2024 goal of collecting 3,000 units. Join local first responders as we encourage community members and badge-carrying agencies to participate in the 2024 campaign.

Upcoming Battle of the Badges blood donation opportunities Jan. 10 – March 31, 2023:

Orange County:

Buena Park

2/13/2024: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., City of Buena Park, 6650 Beach Blvd.

Cypress

1/10/2024: 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., City of Cypress, 5700 Orange Ave.

La Palma

1/31/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., City of La Palma, 7821 Walker St.

Newport Beach

1/29/2024: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., Newport Beach Police Department, 870 Santa Barbara

Seal Beach

2/14/2024: 9:30 a.m. – 4 p.m., City of Seal Beach, 707 Electric Ave.

Westminster

1/30/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., City of Westminster, 8200 Westminster Blvd.

Riverside County:

Lake Elsinore

1/31/2024: 9:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Lake Elsinore City Police & Fire Department, 183 North Main

Moreno Valley

1/17/2024: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., Moreno Valley Sheriff Station, 22850 Calle San Juan de Los Lagos

Riverside

1/10/2024: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Jurupa Valley Sheriff Station, 7477 Mission Blvd.

2/6/2024: 7 a.m. – 5 p.m., Riverside Police Department, 10540 Magnolia Ave.

2/28/2024: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., George E. Brown Jr. Fed Bldg. Riverside, 3470 Twelfth St.

San Bernardino County:

Chino

2/20/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Chino Police Department, 5450 Walnut Ave.

Montclair

2/27/2024: 2 p.m. – 8 p.m., Montclair Police Department, 5111 Benito St.

Rialto

2/13/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Rialto Police Department, 214 N Palm Ave.

Upland

3/7/2024: 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., Upland Police Department, 1499 W 13th St.

Los Angeles County:

Alhambra

1/17/2024: 1 p.m. – 7 p.m., Alhambra Police Department, 211 S First St.

Arcadia

1/20/2024: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., Arcadia Police Department, 250 W Huntington Dr.

Baldwin Park

1/17/2024: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Baldwin Park Police Department, 14403 East Pacific Blvd.

Bell Gardens

3/28/2024: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Bell Gardens Police Department, 6662 Loveland St.

Canoga Park

1/31/2024: 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., LA Police Department Topanga Area Canoga Park, 21501 Schoenborn St.

Downey

2/28/2024: 7 a.m. – 1 p.m., Los Angeles County Internal Svc Downey, 9150 Imperial Hwy.

Gardena

1/19/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Gardena Police Department, 1651 W 162nd St.

2/28/2024: 10 am. 4 p.m. Glendora Police Department, 140 South Glendora Ave.

Granada Hills

1/20/2024: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., Los Angeles Fire Department Station 87 Granada Hills, 10124 Balboa Blvd.

2/17/2024: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., Los Angeles Fire Department Station 87 Granada Hills, 10124 Balboa Blvd.

3/23/2024: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., Los Angeles Fire Department Station 87 Granada Hills, 10124 Balboa Blvd.

Hawthorne      

1/11/2024: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., Hawthorne Police Department, 12501 S Hawthorne Blvd.

Hermosa Beach          

1/11/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Hermosa Beach Police Department, 1315 Valley Dr.

Lomita

2/6/2024: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., City of Lomita, 24200 Narbonne Ave.

Los Angeles   

1/22/2024: 11:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., TR LAPD Olympic LA, 1130 S Vermont Ave.

1/24/2024: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m., Los Angeles Police Department Pacific Division, 12312 Culver Blvd.

1/24/2024: 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., LAPD Southwest LA, 1546 Martin Luther King Blvd.

1/30/2024: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., Los Angeles Police Northeast LA, 3353 San Fernando Rd.

2/5/2024: 11:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., TR LAPD Olympic, 1130 S Vermont Ave.

2/12/2024: 7 a.m. – 1 p.m., US Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Prisons LA, 535 N Alameda St.

2/16/2024: 7 a.m. – 7 p.m., Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center, 1515 N Vermont Ave.

2/19/2024: 11:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., TR LAPD Olympic, 1130 S Vermont Ave.

2/22/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Los Angeles Police Hollenbeck LA, 2111 E 1st St.

3/11/2024: 11:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., TR LAPD Olympic, 1130 S Vermont Ave.

3/25/2024: 11:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., TR LAPD Olympic, 1130 S Vermont Ave.

Mission Hills

1/16/2024: 8 a.m. – 8 p.m., LAPD Mission Area, 11121 Sepulveda Blvd.

Monrovia

1/25/2024: 9:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Monrovia Police Department, 119 W. Palm Ave.

Moorpark

2/21/2024: 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., California Highway Patrol Moorpark, 610 Spring Rd.

Pacoima

2/5/2024: 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., LAPD Foothill Area Pacoima, 12760 Osborne St.

Palmdale

3/18/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Palmdale Regional Medical Center, 38600 Medical Center Dr.

Panorama City

1/25/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., LAPD Valley Traffic Division Panorama C, 7870 Nollan Pl.

Pasadena

1/18/2024: 9a.m. – 3 p.m., City of Pasadena Police Department, 207 N Garfield Ave.

Reseda

1/29/2024: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., Los Angeles Police Department Reseda, 19020 Vanowen St.

Santa Clarita

1/29/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., In Memory of Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer, 23803 McBean Pkwy.

Temple City

2/15/2024: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., Temple Sheriff's Station, 8838 Las Tunas Dr.

West Covina

2/4/2024: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., West Covina Hills Seventh-day Adventist Church, 3536 E Temple Way

Whittier

2/6/2024: 1 p.m. – 7 p.m., Whittier Police Department, 7630 Washington Ave.

Ventura County:

Ventura           

1/26/2024: 8 a.m. – 2 p.m., Ventura County Government Center, 800 Victoria Ave.

How To Donate Blood

These blood drives come as the Red Cross recovers from canceled drives due to severe weather across the country. Blood and platelet donors are needed now to ensure patient needs are met in the coming weeks.

Join our efforts to stand side by side with first responders and come out and donate blood during this annual lifesaving event. Make an appointment by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) and enter sponsor code BOB24.Those who come out to give at a Battle of the Badges blood drive will receive a commemorative T-shirt, while supplies last.

Completion of a RapidPass online health history questionnaire found at redcrossblood.org/rapidpass is encouraged to help speed up the donation process. A blood donor card or driver’s license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age in most states (16 with parental consent where allowed by state law), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements. 

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org/SoCal or cruzrojaamericana.org, or connect with us on Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube. 

# # #