Canadian Blood Services has an urgent need for donors.

The summer has traditionally been a challenging time for Canadian Blood Services, but this year the challenge is even greater. A series of interrelated events this summer have created a “perfect storm” and have reduced the availability of blood for hospitals.

To increase our inventory Canadian Blood Services is joining forces with sports teams, leagues and associations across Ottawa by inviting all players to come out a donate at a special clinic on September 29th. The permanent clinic at 1575 Carling Avenue will be open to all local athletes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. We have 120 appointments to fill!

Because this clinic is meant to pick up extra units, we don't want to take donors away from our regular clinics. We are therefore relying on Ottawa's sports community, and we would love it if you could support this initiative by spreading the word.

We would greatly appreciate it if you could distribute the attached material as widely as possible - to managers, staff, coaches, team captains, players and members. It would also be great if you could put something on your website and/or put something up in your office/establishment encouraging your members to come out to this clinic.

If players have ever thought about donating blood, or if they're a donor who hasn’t given in the last two months, we need them more than ever. They can even come in and donate as a team.

By donating at these special clinics, they're are not only saving three lives, they're are making a real difference in their community.

To book an appointment call 1-888-2 DONATE.

For more information about donating blood visit www.blood.ca.