LEXINGTON, Ky. (WTVQ) – For the first time ever, Kentucky Blood Center will be accepting blood donations at the Kentucky State Fair.
Kentucky Blood Center (KBC) will be located in the Health Horizons building and will be collecting blood from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. every day of the fair.
“We’re excited to be at the State Fair this year,” said Martha Osborne, KBC Executive Director of Marketing and Recruitment. “We are the Kentucky Blood Center, and the blood we collect stays in Kentucky to help Kentucky patients. What better place to share our life-saving mission than at the State Fair where thousands of Kentuckians will be every day?”
To celebrate being at the fair, KBC will give everyone who registers to donate blood a special limited edition State Fair shirt. Anyone who donates at the State Fair will also receive a KBC ball cap. Everyone will also be automatically entered to win a Toyota Tacoma 4X4.
Donors will receive a non-fasting cholesterol test, and results will be posted within five days after donation at kybloodcenter.org, where donors can also find the rules of the truck giveaway.
Blood donors must be 17-years-old (16 with parental consent), weigh at least 110 pounds, be in general good health, show a photo I.D. and meet additional requirements. Sixteen-year-old donors must have a signed parental permission slip, which can be found at kybloodcenter.org.
Blood needs are ongoing. Red cells last only 42 days and must be continually replenished to adequately support Kentucky hospitals. Statistics show that one in seven hospital patients will require blood transfusions during their stay. However, only 37 percent of the population is eligible to donate blood and less than 10 percent does. All blood types are needed, and there is a particular demand for type O negative blood since it is the “universal donor” and needed in emergencies when the patient’s blood type is unknown.
