Blood drive on Nov. 30 – Dec. 1 to honor Fort Worth officer Hank Nava
Carter BloodCare event expects to collect blood donations to save 200+ local lives
FORT WORTH, Texas (Nov. 21, 2022) – The 6th Annual Hank Nava End of Watch Blood Drive takes place next week in Fort Worth. The event honors the memory of a fallen first responder by supporting local patients in urgent need of lifesaving transfusions.
The annual drive is named in memory of Henry “Hank” Nava Jr., who served with the Fort Worth Police Department for 14 years. Officer Nava died Dec. 1, 2005, after being shot in the line of duty two days earlier. His widow, Teresa Nava-Salazar, and two children host the annual blood drive to continue his legacy of helping the Fort Worth community.
The blood drive is open to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, and Thursday, Dec. 1. It takes place at the Fort Worth Police Officers Association, located at 100 N. Forest Park Blvd., Ste. 200 in Fort Worth.
Over the course of the two-day event, organizers hope to collect more than 75 units of blood, which could help save the lives of 225 local patients.
“Each unit of donated whole blood can be separated into three lifesaving components: red blood cells, platelets and plasma,” said Carter BloodCare Field Recruitment Consultant Colleen Horan. “Those components are vital for helping patients with massive bleeding injuries, people undergoing cancer treatments, children with anemia and so many of our North Texas neighbors in need.”
Horan added that the Nov. 30 – Dec. 1 event comes at a critical time for the community blood supply. Donations can drop over the holiday season as families travel and high school donors are on break. However, the need for blood is nonstop, especially for type O negative; as the universal blood type, O negative can be used to treat any patient, including premature and unborn babies.
“The blood drive provides positive support to patients during some of the most challenging times of their lives,” said Horan. “We encourage all eligible donors to honor Officer Nava’s legacy and join his family and the men and women of the Fort Worth Police Department by donating blood.”
To secure a time to give, donors can call Carter BloodCare at 800-366-2834. Also, donors can visit CarterBloodCare.org, click the Donate Now tab, and search “Hank Nava” to find available appointments.
In appreciation for giving, each donor will receive a Carter BloodCare fleece blanket, while supplies last.
About Carter BloodCare
Carter BloodCare is an independent, community blood center providing transfusion resources to more than 200 medical facilities in 50-plus counties of North, Central and East Texas. The nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization is one of the largest blood programs in Texas, delivering more than 440,000 blood products annually to meet hospitals’ requirements for their patients. Services include collection, processing, specialized laboratory testing, storage and distribution of blood and blood products.
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