The staff of the courthouse donation bus
CULLMAN – There are many ways to help people, and the most common way is to donate to a good cause. When you add in a competition, people are even more enthusiastic to help contribute, whether the donations are food, clothing, money… or even blood. It's unclear at press time whether Team Cullman City or Team Cullman County came out on top, but the true winners are the patients who will receive the donations.
This is especially true since there is an emergency need for blood donations in the Cullman area. At the courthouse donation area, LifeSouth workers Melanie Moore and Dawn Prestwood explained that they only have a two-day supply for local hospitals.
Fortunately, the workers at the different donation areas were optimistic about donor turnouts. While the morning started off slowly, Moore commented that more people would probably show up after lunchtime. Some buses, like the ones at Dick's Sporting Goods, experienced a slower morning than ones in higher-traffic areas, such as Wal-Mart on Olive Street. Overall, the buses had about 15-20 donors by 10:30 Friday morning. Each donation can help three patients, so community members around Cullman had already saved between 45 and 60 lives before noon.
It was estimated that there are around 140 eligible blood donors throughout Cullman, both for the city and the county, and Moore thanked each of them for taking the time to help their community. "We have some of the most generous donors in north Alabama, and we'd just like to say thank you."
It's also important to remember that blood donations are needed consistently, not just during emergency situations. When a crisis happens and hundreds of people go to donate blood, hospitals and blood banks often end up with a surplus that goes unused and ends up going bad before it's needed. This can lead to a shortage, so eligible donors should keep in mind that blood is always needed, not just during emergencies.
Team sites for Cullman County were the Cullman County Courthouse and Wal-Mart south. The City had Wal-Mart north and Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Check back for final results.
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