Nebraska Community Blood Bank: It Takes a Village to Save Lives Through Blood Donation
When Lisa Bockman started coordinating blood drives at Aksarben Village in 2017, she had no idea she’d be sitting in the donor chair next to her mom, Betty, for her first time donation.
What brought her mom out to donate blood? Lisa asked her to do it.
The number one reason why people don’t donate blood is because they’ve never been asked. It’s coordinators like Lisa, Special Events Coordinator at Noddle Companies, who are changing that.
“Coordinators need to be someone who wants to rally together to help others and build unity in a community, whether it’s various businesses like here at Aksarben or to build community among coworkers elsewhere,” she said.
As Lisa works to expand the number of regular donors, she is focusing on educating those who might be afraid.
“I’ve been donating regularly since we’ve started hosting and I always have a great experience. The collections team puts me at ease and the process is quick. For those who are apprehensive, I ask them to just stop by, walk through the process with me, see how easy and painless it is and then maybe consider helping save a life themselves.”
This year’s Aksarben Village blood drives are February 9, May 18, August 17 and November 9. To schedule a donation visit NCBB.ORG and use sponsor code AKS. Nebraska Community Blood Bank works with more than 150 businesses and organizations to host blood drives in Nebraska. If you are interested in coordinating a blood drive, please email blooddrives@ncbb.org or call (402) 486-9427.