The American Red Cross has appointments available and is seeking donors to help prevent a blood shortage. This summer, The American Red Cross has faced a concerning drop in blood and platelet donations. Please join us by donating blood and honoring your hero at the Hometown Heroes Blood Drive Thursday, August 4 in East Peoria!
“Statistics show everybody will know somebody who received blood once in their lifetime. We never know what can happen, and the blood need doesn’t stop – patients still have cancer, burn victims are still in the hospital. The only way we can source blood is through volunteer donors,” said Ellen Emerick, a district manager for the Red Cross biomedical team in the Illinois region.
Emerick is also a member of Heart of Illinois Blue Star Mothers, an organization co-sponsoring this blood drive along with the U.S. Coast Guard. You are encouraged to come out and roll up a sleeve to show support to our military, emergency services crews, hospital staff or even neighbors who are there to lend a hand.
Thursday, Aug. 4 | 1 to 6 p.m.
Holiday Inn and Suites
Grand Ballroom
101 Holiday Street
East Peoria, IL 61611
All presenting donors will receive a $10 e-gift card and a chance to win gas for a year (a $6,000 value!)
Make an appointment by visiting redcrossblood.org (Sponsor Code: HOMETOWNHERO), calling 800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App. All Red Cross blood drive and donation centers follow the highest standards of safety and infection control.
American Red Cross volunteers responded to 7 home fires in Central Illinois in the past week. Volunteers responded to incidents in Danville, Hammond, Peoria. Washburn and Watseka.
Home Fire Response
American Red Cross volunteers responded to 4 home fires in Tazewell, Champaign, Iroquois, and Logan counties in the past week and provided assistance to 22 individuals, through supplying them with basic items to meet immediate needs after a fire, and additional support in the form of health and mental health services and one-on-one support as the families involved work through next steps after experiencing a home fire.
If you or someone you know needs assistance after a home fire or local disaster, please call our dispatch line: (877) 597-0747.
Download our new and improved Red Cross Emergency app for detailed home fire prevention and safety tips. Compatible with Apple Watch and Android wearable devices, search “American Red Cross” in app stores or go to redcross.org/apps.
Home fires are the most frequent disaster and claim seven lives every day in the U.S. Working smoke alarms can cut the risk of death in a home fire by 50 percent. To help protect your household, test your smoke alarms each month and practice your escape plan until everyone can get out in less than two minutes.
Visit redcross.org/fire for more information.
About the American Red Cross of Illinois
The American Red Cross of Illinois serves 12.4 million people in 88 counties in Illinois, Iowa and Missouri including Adams, Bond, Boone, Brown, Bureau, Carroll, Cass, Champaign, Christian, Clark, Clay, Clinton, Cook, Coles, Crawford, Cumberland, DeKalb, De Witt, Douglas, DuPage, Edgar, Effingham, Fayette, Ford, Franklin, Fulton, Green, Grundy, Hamilton, Hancock, Henderson, Henry, Iroquois, Jasper, Jefferson, Kane, Kankakee, Kendall, Knox, LaSalle, Lake, Lee, Livingston, Logan, Macon, Macoupin, Marion, Marshall, Mason, McDonough, McHenry, McLean, Menard, Mercer, Montgomery, Morgan, Moultrie, Ogle, Peoria, Perry, Piatt, Pike, Putnam, Richland, Rock Island, Sangamon, Schuyler, Scott, Shelby, Stark, Stephenson, Tazewell, Vermillion, Warren, Washington, Whiteside, Will, Williamson Winnebago, Woodford. Iowa: Lee, Muscatine, Scott and Van Buren. Missouri: Clark, Lewis, Marion and Ralls. 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, please visit us at Redcross.org/Illinois or visit us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @RedCrossIL.
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