There's simply not enough blood to go around.
That's the warning that Canadian Blood Services paired with its announcement about the new 450 Challenge, which strives to fill the gap in donors needed to treat everyone in need of blood across the country.
This initiative revolves around the fact that 450 new donors are needed every single day in order to keep up with the need for blood and plasma.
According to Canadian Blood Services, the current number of donors is falling far short of this target, with an average of 230 new donors contributing each day throughout all of Canada.
By introducing the 450 Challenge, Canadian Blood Services hopes that more people will be motivated to head down to their local blood bank and contribute.
Some of the first people to jump on this new challenge were the mayors from both Abbotsford and Mission, who recently travelled down to the Abbotsford donation centre on South Fraser Way to donate plasma.
Mayor Paul Horn of Mission and Mayor Ross Siemens of Abbotsford were joined by Abbotsford Councillor Dave Sidhu, with all three men donating, which Horn said was a very comfortable experience from start to finish.
"It was genuinely a relaxing process,” said Horn. “It doesn’t hurt at all. It’s been a rewarding experience, as the people are so warm and welcoming here.”
In order to schedule a donation time and participate in the 450 Challenge, visit at.blood.ca/450.
