Before ringing in the new year, the American Red Cross celebrated the grand opening of its new East Norriton Blood Donation Center with a ribbon cutting ceremony on Dec. 19, 2024. The Red Cross began collecting blood and platelet donations at the site on Halloween.

The new facility is located inside Northtowne Plaza at the intersection of Germantown and DeKalb pikes, just across from Suburban Community Hospital, in the heart of Montgomery County. Once you’re at the shopping center, you can find it between Dollar General and America’s Best.

The new facility is now one of two fixed blood donation sites in Montgomery County, joining our Horsham location, which opened in 2021.

“These sites allow us to collect more blood products to supply to hospitals all over the Delaware Valley,” said Lynn Cohen, executive director of the Red Cross Delaware Valley Chapter, which serves Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties.

While mobile blood drives will continue to operate at businesses, schools, churches and other locations throughout the region, some donors may find it easier to fit a blood donation into their busy schedules at convenient, fixed locations with consistent hours.

“Unfortunately, work and other factors have impacted when and where people give blood, creating new challenges we must overcome,” Lynn shared.

To meet the growing and changing needs for blood products, the East Norriton site is one of four new donation centers the Red Cross has opened in Southeastern Pennsylvania, plus another one less than a mile from the Pennsylvania state line in Wilmington, Delaware.

Importantly, donation centers are where the Red Cross collects platelets – tiny cells in your blood that form clots and stop bleeding. With a shelf life of only five days, platelets are in constant demand to treat patients with cancer and others facing life-threatening illnesses and injuries.

“When someone experiences an emergency, it’s the blood already on hospital shelves that helps save lives,” Lynn reminded those attending the ribbon cutting. “Patients and their families are counting on the generosity of volunteer blood donors to share their health.”

The East Norriton Blood Donation Center is open Mondays 11:45 a.m.-8 p.m., Thursdays 10:15 a.m.-6:30 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays 7:15 a.m.-3:30 p.m. To schedule an appointment to donate, visit RedCrossBlood.org, use the Red Cross Blood Donor App or call 1-800-REDCROSS (1-800-733-2767).