Blood drive hits home needs 150 units

ROYAL CITY - Area LDS churches have an on-going blood donation campaign with a goal of 450 units. With only the Royal City drive left, the campaign is 150 shy of the goal.

Royal City is hosting its blood drive on Thursday, Oct. 2, from 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

"The New Life Fellowship Church has generously offered the blood drive to be held in their building, next to the park," drive spokeswoman Christ Lee said. "All of the churches, schools, businesses and the community in general are invited to come and donate blood."

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints conducts a community service project in honor of 9/11 each year, Lee said. This year it is conducting blood drives in Warden, Othello, Mattawa and Royal City.

"Royal City is the last of these blood drives and we need 150 (or so) to reach our goal of 450 units," Lee said. "We really hope people will come out and support this."

Although it's the Red Cross for which the LDS churches are taking donations, it may be people you know or know of who need the blood.

"This blood drive hits home. We have had a couple of members of our community who have recently been in need of blood transfusions," Lee said.

One of these is Dave Eilers, husband of Red Rock Elementary Principal Theresa Eilers. He was in a serious motorcycle accident and needed blood transfusions.

The other is Terry Hebdon, who has been fighting cancer. He needs blood transfusions twice a week. As Hebdon wryly puts it in a letter to the editor this week, he's "living on borrowed blood."

"We really need people to realize just how close to home this drive is," Lee said. "We have many signed up, but we need more to reach our goal."