The Community Blood Bank is urging donors to continue to make blood donation appointments as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.

All donors in the month of May will be automatically entered to win a kayak package, complete with two kayaks, paddles and a $100 Dick’s Sporting Goods gift card.

Upon the introduction of COVID-19 in the United States, blood centers faced the troubling prospect that many mobile blood drives, which account for the vast majority of donations, would be cancelled. To date, nearly 355,000 blood donations have been lost in the U.S. as a result of these cancelled opportunities.

However, residents in local communities provided an unprecedented response to this unprecedented challenge. Thanks to their selflessness and willingness to act, the team at CBB screened 700 more donors in March than the original estimates for the month.

Now that hospitals are starting to resume elective surgeries, CBB expects the need for blood to increase quickly and significantly. This comes at a time when those 700 additional units that have sustained the organization through the last 5-6 weeks are running out. Donors are needed now more than ever to maintain the adequate blood supply for patients in need.

In Bradford, a blood drive will be held from noon to 5:30 p.m. Monday at St. Bernard Catholic Church, 95 E. Corydon St.

Call Shari Jerman at 814-688-3696 to schedule an appointment to donate.

The CBB is going above and beyond precautionary measures to ensure a safe and healthy environment for all donors, staff and volunteers. Those precautionary measures include: all donors and staff members are required to wear masks, temperatures of all personnel at the blood collection location are taken prior to entering the blood drive, extra sanitation measures are taken in between every donor and the chairs and collection beds are spread further apart.

As the coronavirus continues to spread in the United States, the Community Blood Bank is working closely with national organizations, including AABB Interorganizational Task Force, Blood Centers of America (BCA), America’s Blood Centers (ABC), the CDC and the FDA to ensure the continued adequacy of the blood supply.