In Face of Large Blood Donor Decline, Local Red Cross Launches #MissingTypes Campaign

Pasadena’s Blood Donation Center at 133 N. Altadena Drive is joining the American Red Cross’s #MissingTypes campaign this month to encourage people to donate blood and to raise awareness that new blood donors are needed every day to save the lives of patients who depend on the generosity of volunteer donors.

The Red Cross says new blood donors have declined by about 80,000 each year for the past four years.

During the campaign, launched last week, the letters for the main blood groups – A, B, and O – will disappear from websites, corporate logos, social media pages and signs in an effort to draw attention to the key role every blood donor plays in saving the lives of patients.

Celebrities, influencers and iconic brands have also joined the movement, and will omit the letters from their social media messages.

“Everyday thousands of patients across the United States rely on generous blood donors for critical blood transfusions,” Gail McGovern, president and CEO of the Red Cross, said in a press release Monday. “However, we have seen a troubling decline in the number of new blood donors. We urge the public to roll up a sleeve and fill the missing types before these lifesaving letters go missing from hospital shelves.”

The Pasadena Blood Donation Center continues to accept blood donations Monday through Sunday. In addition, the American Red Cross will conduct a blood donation drive on Wednesday, June 20, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Pasadena Public Health Department at 1845 North Fair Oaks Avenue.

For more information about the #MissingTypes campaign, visit www.redcrossblood.org/missingtypes.html.

For blood donation hours at the Pasadena Blood Donation Center, visit www.redcrossblood.org/local-homepage/location/pasadena-american-red-cross.html.