New Jersey Blood Services to Hold Blood Drive July 6 at Verizon’s Livingston Office
Drive to Help Restore Blood Supply After Holiday; All Donors to Receive Two Tickets to a Mets Baseball Game
(3BL Media) Livingston, NJ – July 3, 2012 – Maintaining an adequate blood supply is crucial for the well-being of New Jersey’s communities.
For Verizon employees, that often-heard message took on a special meaning in April when a fellow employee, Michael Heaney, sustained a critical brain injury after being struck by a sport utility vehicle while riding his bicycle in Morris Township and needed 21 units of blood.
Verizon – along with the New Jersey Blood Services, a division of New York Blood Center – held several blood drives in Heaney’s honor, collecting more than 200 units of blood. Another blood drive is planned for July 6 at Verizon’s office in the Eisenhower Corporate Center, 290 West Mt. Pleasant Ave., in Livingston.
The blood drive will be held from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. in conference room K near the cafeteria and is open to the public and to neighboring businesses and building tenants. All donors will receive two tickets to a New York Mets baseball game.
Nearly everyone age 17 (age 16 with parents' written permission) to 75 who weighs a minimum of 110 pounds and is in good health is eligible to donate. People age 76 and older can donate if they meet all donor-eligibility requirements and have written permission from a doctor. One pint of donated blood can be given to up to three people, as the blood is broken down into various components used for different purposes.
“Verizon blood donors always step up to the plate for the community blood supply,” said Marie Forrestal, director of donor recruitment for New Jersey Blood Services. “This time it hit home for them, and the Verizon donors came out in strong support for one of their own. We urge everyone to consider a life-saving summer donation when the blood supply typically drops.”
Sam Delgado, vice president of external affairs for Verizon New Jersey and Newark chair of the 2012 New Jersey Volunteer Leadership Campaign for the New York Blood Center, said: “Donating blood is giving the gift of life to another person, as we were reminded when Mike Heaney was involved in a horrific accident. We welcome anyone who may be interested in participating in the blood drive because maintaining an adequate blood supply is so important, especially right after holidays like Independence Day when there is a greater need to renew the blood supply.”
People interested in learning more about donating can contact New Jersey Blood Services toll free at 1-800-933-2566 or visit www.nybloodcenter.org.
Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ), headquartered in New York, is a global leader in delivering broadband and other wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business, government and wholesale customers. Verizon Wireless operates America's most reliable wireless network, with 93 million retail customers nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America's most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers in more than 150 countries, including all of the Fortune 500. A Dow 30 company with $111 billion in 2011 revenues, Verizon employs a diverse workforce of nearly 192,000. For more information, visit www.verizon.com.
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