Local blood donors honored

The donor appreciation evening , Aug. 12th was a very special celebration of gratitude for the nearly 1,500 units collected in the greater Tehachapi area over the last 12 months. Not only is donor participation at an all-time high, but Houchin was able to acknowledge and thank some of their very special volunteers and partners that make these blood drives possible. Malcolm Harrell who has volunteered for Houchin for almost 2 years, prior to leaving for college, was honored for his nearly 100 volunteer hours at local blood drives. He was given certificates of appreciation from Congressman Kevin McCarthy, State Senator Jean Fuller, Assemblywoman Shannon Grove and 2nd District Kern County Supervisor Zack Scrivner.

A special tribute was also made to the Tehachapi Lion's club for their years of dedication to supporting patients in our local hospitals for hosting a community blood drive at The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church every 8 weeks! Their tireless efforts and decades of service to Houchin Blood Bank's mission of providing a safe and adequate blood supply to our county has been unwavering. The Houchin team was truly humbled to be in the presence of such a civic minded and generous group. Some donors in attendance had given as many as 14 gallons of blood, representing a lifetime of giving.

Other blood drive partners in the area include Albertson's , CCI, Bear Valley CSD, Christian Life Assembly, Stallion Springs CSD, Walgreen's and World Wind and Solar. Many donors were in attendance who live in Tehachapi, but donate at work at our neighboring blood drives at CalPortland, Mojave Air and Space Port and Rio Tinto Minerals.

Greg Gallion, CEO of Houchin Community Blood Bank was there to communicate his heartfelt gratitude for Tehachapi residents who regularly donate whole blood on the mobiles and platelets or plasma through our Trima program. He also shared the current trend for an increase in patients needing platelets and plasma and invited Tehachapi residents to consider visiting one of our two locations in Bakersfield where they can support those patients by donating through our Trima program.

Houchin Community Blood Bank is the exclusive provider of blood products to all Kern County Hospitals, including our own Tehachapi Hospital. We were delighted to have Tehachapi Hospital CEO, Eugene Suksi in attendance.

Without our business partners, church groups, volunteers, donors and the media, we could not meet the needs of the patients in our community. Join our lifesaving team of blood donors and give the gift of life on Sept. 15th at The Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, 329 South Mill St. from noon-6 p.m. You can also visit our website at http://www.hcbb.com to see upcoming opportunities to donate blood. People live when people give!

Christina Scrivner

Community Development Account Manager

Houchin Community Blood Bank

(661)565-5553

[email protected]