Valley Cities Unite in Effort to Raise Record Amount of Blood Donations

Coachella Valley cities will try to outdo each other this summer in collecting the most blood donations, a Desert Blood Services spokesman said Monday.

Last year, more than 700 units of blood were collected through the first Nine Cities Blood Drive Challenge, which was started to highlight the need for donations, "especially during summer months, when collections typically decrease while demand increases for blood products," Desert Blood Services spokesman Don Escalante said.

The schedule:

• July 1, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Celebrity Ballroom at Indian Wells Club, 44500 Indian Wells Lane
• July 10, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Indio Teen Center, 81-678 Avenue 46
• July 16, noon to 6 p.m. in Rancho Mirage City Council chambers at City Hall, 69-825 Highway 111
• July 19, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Palm Desert High School, 74910 Aztec Road
• July 23, 12:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Embassy Suites, 50777 Santa Rosa Plaza, La Quinta
• July 24, noon to 6 p.m. at the Palm Springs Police Department, 200 S. Civic Drive
• July 30, noon to 6 p.m. at the Coachella Senior Center, 1540 Seventh St.
• July 3, 12:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Desert Princess Golf Resort, 67967 Vista Chino, Cathedral City
• Aug. 1, 1 to 7 p.m. at the Desert Wellness Center, 11570 Cholla Drive, Desert Hot Springs

All donors will receive a T-shirt, and one donor will win a gift basket at each drive, Escalante said.

Desert Blood Services serves Desert Regional Medical Center, Eisenhower Medical Center, JFK Memorial Hospital, Hi-Desert Medical Center, Palo Verde Hospital and Bush Naval Hospital.

Walk-ins will be accepted, but appointments are suggested and may be made by calling (800) 879-4484 or visiting www.desertbloodservices.org.

– City News Service.