St. Michael’s Hall to hold blood drive benefitting Fort Loramie teenager

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FORT LORAMIE — The community is invited to give blood in support of young Fort Loramie trauma patient Alex Poeppelman at the St. Michael’s Hall community blood drive Tuesday, Dec. 21, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at 33 Elm St., Fort Loramie.

The blood drive is in honor of 14-year-old Alex Poeppelman, an eighth-grade student at Fort Loramie Junior High, who was seriously injured in an accidental firearm discharge on Nov. 5.

“Alex was accidentally shot in the left side of his abdomen. Alex is stable now, he still has a long road ahead of him,” his mother, Shiela Poeppelman, said. “Alex has received multiple units of blood and plasma, too many to count. On one of the bad days he was given eight units of blood and three units of plasma. A cooler holds four units of blood and three units of plasma. They used multiple coolers in the OR when they brought him in.”

Alex has undergone 13 surgeries. His O positive blood type has been in high demand throughout the pandemic and CBC faced an emergency shortage of type O in November.

“We want to do whatever we can do to get the blood supply up,” Poeppelman said. “The transfusions helped save Alex’s life twice now. There are a lot of people who want to help us out in any way. So we figured that this was an amazing way to give back and help save someone else’s life.”

Everyone who registers to donate will get the “Be a Hometown Hero This Holiday” fleece blanket with CBC blood drop logo. Appointments are encouraged. Schedule online at www.DonorTime.com or call 937-461-3220.

The holiday season is an important time to donate. Many businesses and organizations are not hosting blood drives due to continued COVID-19 related restrictions and people are often distracted from donating during this busy time of holiday activities and travel.

The season of giving is a good time to give back. CBC asks community members to consider becoming a blood donor, donating more often, becoming a platelet or plasma donor, or sponsoring a blood drive. Call 937-461-3220 to learn how to help.

Donors are required to provide a photo ID that includes their full name. Past CBC donors also are asked to bring their CBC donor ID card.

Donors must be at least 17 years of age, or 16 years old with parental consent, weigh a minimum of 110 pounds and be in good physical health. The Food and Drug Administration changes blood donor eligibility guidelines periodically.

Individuals with eligibility questions are invited to email [email protected] or call 800-388-GIVE.

Community Blood Center/Community Tissue Services® is an independent, not-for-profit organization. Community Blood Center provides blood products to 23 hospitals and health centers within a 15-county service area in the Miami (Ohio) and Whitewater (Indiana) Valleys. For more information about Community Blood Center/Community Tissue Services®, visit www.givingblood.org.

Alex Poeppelman
https://www.sidneydailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/47/2021/12/web1_Alex-Poeppelman.jpgAlex Poeppelman

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