Carter BloodCare is giving away an SUV to someone who donates blood, but you'll need to register through January 10 to be eligible to win.

January is blood donor month, and the need for blood is high. According to a report from KCENCarter BloodCare is rewarding one lucky donor with a new Chevrolet Trax, courtesy of The Thompson Group Classic Chevrolet, with their "The Spirit of Giving SUV Giveaway."

The director of public relations with Carter BloodCare, Linda Goelzer, said they ended 2020 on a downturn. 20% to 25% of their blood donations come through high school blood drives. They weren't able to get as much blood as last year with fewer blood drives.

The need for blood is higher right now because of the slow 2020. Here's a stat you may not know: 4.5 million American lives are saved each year by blood transfusions.

"A lot of the medical miracles that happen in our day and age that we don't even think of as being miracles anymore, they happen successfully because there is a safe and sufficient blood supply," Goelzer said.

Give Blood, win an SUV. Going on right now, Anyone who registers to be a donor through January 10 will automatically qualify to win an Chevrolet Trax SUV from The Thompson Group Classic Chevrolet.

A mighty fine reward for doing something that we should all be doing anyway.

Remember, you can donate blood every 56 days.

Carter BloodCare is also looking for donation's of Covid Convalescent Plasma. (CCP) CCP is being used for hospitalized Covid-19 patients.

"At a time when we're social distancing there's nothing quite as intimate as giving of yourself to someone else, and blood is a tremendous quality that has powerful rewards for patients," Goelzer said.

Make plans to give blood or plasma. To schedule an appointment, click here.

By the way, Scott & White is also looking for blood donations, but what they also really need are donations of convalescent plasma from people who've recovered from COVID-19. That plasma will be used to treat patients who are currently battling the virus.

If you meet the following criteria, you're eligible to donate, and while there's not a big prize involved, it could help save lives.

  • Have had a lab-confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19 (and can supply supporting documentation)
  • Have fully recovered from COVID-19 infection and been symptom-free for at least 14 days
  • Be at least 17 years of age
  • Meet standard blood donor eligibility criteria

You can register to donate plasma here. Again, they're looking for convalescent plasma from folks who've recovered from COVID-19 to help those who are currently fighting it.

You can find out more about convalescent plasma here, including what it is and how it's helping patients with COVID-19.

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