Local Boy Scouts Host Blood Drive

Local Boy Scouts, in partnership with the American Red Cross, J.P. Mascaro and Sons, and the Greater Philadelphia Boy Scouts, are encouraging everyone in our area, which includes the Springfield, Upper Dublin, Wissahickon and Colonial School Districts, to help fill an urgent late-summer need for blood by donating now.

The local drive is scheduled for Sunday, August 24, between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. It will be held at American Legion Post #10, 493 Bethlehem Pike in Fort Washington. Sign-ups are available online at www.colbsa.org/blooddrive or by calling 484-654-9245.

More drives are scheduled for Philadelphia, Rose Valley, Wayne, Telford, Bryn Mawr and Secane over the next two weekends. All are part of the Scouting for Life/Francesco A. Mascaro Memorial Blood Drive, which encompasses much of the Delaware Valley.

“Giving blood, especially during late August, one of the most critical times of the year for our blood supply, is just one more great way for Scouting to give back,” said Peter Walts, Eagle Scout and Scouting for Life chairman. “But this ‘giving back’ saves lives! We’re proud to be partnering with J. P. Mascaro and the American Red Cross in this effort.”

All blood types are needed. Donors who are at least 17 years old (or 16 with parental permission, weigh at least 110 pounds and in good health may be eligible to donate blood. A blood donor card or a driver’s license, or two other forms of identification, are required at check-in.

Donors that participate in a Scouting for Life blood drive will receive a T-shirt and coupon for a coffee and donut or ice cream, plus the satisfaction of knowing that they helped save lives.