Holiday Happiness: Happy Valentine’s Day

It’s Valentine’s Day. A day to think of and spend time with our loved ones. A day to exchange cards, chocolate, and flowers. But, it’s also a day to help with the life giving gift of blood.

Today, only about 38-percent of the United States’ population is eligible to give blood. Of those eligible, only about 8-percent donate.

"A blood donation provides a true gift from the heart that can give someone another holiday season with loved ones," said Scott Caswell, CEO of the Central Plains Region Red Cross. "Blood is available only when generous donors are willing to roll up their sleeves. It truly may be the greatest gift someone receives this holiday season."

Giving blood is an easy process. It usually takes an hour at most. You show up, read some forms, answer some questions, then they lay you down and take a pint. It ends with a snack and something to drink. You replace the fluid in hours and the red blood cells within four weeks. It takes eight weeks to restore the iron lost after donating.

It’s a great way to donate to an important cause and get the "Be Nice to Me- I Gave Blood Today" sticker that is as important for the person that got your blood as the "I Voted Today" sticker. I’m always proud of wearing both.

Other reasons for giving:

1. More than 4.5 million patients need blood transfusions each year in the U.S. and Canada.

2. 43,000 pints: amount of donated blood used each day in the U.S. and Canada.

3. Someone needs blood every two seconds.

4. Only 37 percent of the U.S. population is eligible to donate blood – less than 10 percent do annually.

5. About 1 in 7 people entering a hospital need blood.

6. One pint of blood can save up to three lives.

Where you go to help: http://www.redcross.org/donate/give/