RED LETTER DAY FOR RED CORD HONOR GRADUATES NUMBERS SOAR AS STUDENTS SEEK COMMUNITY SERVICE ACHIEVEMENTS

DAYTON, Ohio – The Community Blood Center (CBC) is again joining parents and educators in honoring high school seniors committed to helping others through the gift of life. The CBC Red Cord Honor Program is entering its third year and a record number of participants are expected to earn the Red Cord by the time graduation arrives next spring.

Last year more than 1700 high school seniors from CBC’s 15-county service area earned Red Cord distinction by registering to donate at least three times during their high school careers.
CBC launched the Red Cord Honor Program in 2009 with 12 area schools enrolled in the pilot program. By the end of the school year 235 graduates from eight schools had earned the honor.

In the 2010-2011 school year the number of Red Cord recipients soared to 1700, representing 98 high schools across CBC’s 15-county region, all of which hosted multiple blood drives.
CBC is grateful to parents for the consent for their children to donate, and for the cooperation of educators at participating schools. Both are essential to student success in the Red Cord Honor Program.

Here are the requirements for the Red Cord Honor Program:

• Students are enrolled when they register to donate blood at their Red Cord Honor Program participating high school blood drive.
• Students must register to donate three or more times during their high school careers.
• Students may donate at their Red Cord Honor Program participating high school blood drive, any CBC community blood drive, or at any one of our CBC branch locations to qualify for a Red Cord.

Blood donation requirements: Donors are required to provide a photo ID that includes their full name. Past CBC donors are also asked to bring their CBC donor ID card. Donors must be at least 16 years of age (16 years old with parental consent: form available at www.givingblood.org or at CBC branch & blood drive locations), weigh a minimum of 110 pounds, and be in good physical health. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) changes blood donor eligibility guidelines periodically. Individuals with eligibility questions are invited to email canidonate@cbccts.org or call 1(800)388-GIVE. Make an appointment at www.DonorTime.com.

Community Blood Center/Community Tissue Services® is an independent, not-for-profit organization. Community Blood Center provides blood products to 24 hospitals within a 15-county service area in the Miami (Ohio) and Whitewater (Indiana) Valleys. For more information about Community Blood Center/Community Tissue Services®, visit www.givingblood.org.