Community Blood Center of the Ozarks is holding a blood drive honoring former Springfield Police Officer Aaron Pearson on Friday, March 20.
The drive will be held at CBCO’s Thomson Donor Center in Springfield, located at 220 W. Plainview Road.
Donation hours are from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Donors on that day will receive a commemorative T-shirt that expresses support for Pearson and police departments across the region.
A press release from CBCO says in January of 2015, Officer Pearson was critically wounded after being shot in the face in the line of duty. He required 20 units of blood during his emergency surgery and subsequent recovery. In the past few years since the incident, the Pearson family has become advocates for blood donation. Hundreds have rolled up their sleeves to honor Pearson in past years of this event.
The CBCO says donors are also needed to combat shortages during the coronavirus pandemic.
CBCO says the coronavirus pandemic has caused more than 45 area blood drives to be cancelled for the remainder of March and April, resulting in the anticipated loss of over 1,800 potential donations. Around 50 percent of previously scheduled drives have been cancelled over the next few weeks. It takes around 200 donations per day to meet area patient needs.
CBCO is calling on all healthy individuals to donate blood immediately.
