We would like to thank Kohl's for their generous donation of $14,683 to the Youth Diabetes Care Network.
This donation will aid children with diabetes and provide such services as Camp DAY Break (Diabetes and Youth), diabetes training for school staff in the region, grandparent/caregiver workshops, and prevention and inpatient education.
Anna Ellinghouse, daughter of Dave and Amy Ellinghouse of Dexter is on first person sitting on the floor on the left.
Dexter, Missouri - The Rotary Club will host a Blood Drive on Monday, August 17th from 2 p.m. - 8 p.m. at Sacred Heart Church in Dexter. The Blood Drive is in honor of Gaige Willems who has defeated cancer twice and received a multitude of blood transfusions. Without your blood, they could not have saved his life.
The American Red Cross is facing a looming shortage of the blood types most needed by patients and is calling on eligible donors with O negative, B negative and A negative blood to give now to prevent an emergency situation. Blood donation appointments can be quickly and easily scheduled by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting redcrossblood.org or calling 1-800-RED CROSS.
Overall blood donations in the Red Cross Missouri-Illinois Blood Services Region have been approximately 3,000 fewer per month in June and July this year than the previous 10 months of the year. When demand for the most needed types begins to outpace donations, the Red Cross alerts donors to help restock the shelves.
Type O negative is the universal blood type and can be transfused to patients with any blood type. Types B negative and A negative can be transfused to Rh positive or negative patients. Eligible donors are encouraged to donate double red cells – a process where two units of red cells are collected while most of the plasma and platelets are returned to the donor – where available.
“Summer blood shortages are not uncommon, but they can be prevented when generous volunteers roll up their sleeves to help save lives,” said Todd Wagner, donor recruitment director for the Red Cross Missouri-Illinois Region. “Many donors have already given this summer. We’re now asking donors who haven’t donated, and those who are eligible again, to make an appointment to give now to help ensure blood products are available for patients.”
Platelets and type AB plasma also needed
Platelet donors and those with type AB blood are also continually needed to help ensure patients receive the lifesaving blood products they need. Platelets – a key clotting component of blood often needed by cancer patients, surgical patients and bone narrow recipients – must be transfused within five days of donation, so donations are constantly needed. Donors with type AB blood are urged to give blood or platelets to restock the plasma supply. Type AB donors have the universal plasma type, which can be given to patients of all blood types.
Individuals who donated blood earlier this summer may be eligible to donate again and help patients like an expectant mother at a Red Cross-supported hospital who is currently receiving nearly 100 units of blood products a week until she delivers. Her need alone could add up to 1,100 units.
How to donate blood
The free Blood Donor App – available in app stores by searching for American Red Cross or by texting BLOODAPP to 90999 – not only makes appointment scheduling easy, but donors can also access their digital donor card and be notified when their donation is distributed to a hospital. Donors can also visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) to make an appointment or for more information. All blood types are needed to ensure a reliable supply for patients. A blood donor card or driver’s license or two other forms of identification are required at check-in. Individuals who are 17 years of age (16 with parental consent in some states), weigh at least 110 pounds and are in generally good health may be eligible to donate blood. High school students and other donors 18 years of age and younger also have to meet certain height and weight requirements.
Blood donors in the Missouri-Illinois Blood Services Region can now save time at their next donation by using RapidPass to complete their pre-donation reading and health history questionnaire online, on the day of their donation, prior to arriving at the blood drive. To get started and learn more, visit redcrossblood.org/RapidPass and follow the instructions on the site.
About the American Red Cross
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.
Just a few days from now, on 11 August, we will mark a tremendous milestone: one full year without a single case of polio caused by wild poliovirus in Africa.
The magnitude of this achievement can hardly be overstated. A polio-free Africa has been within sight, so near and yet so far, for over a decade. The hard work and commitment that have brought us to this point have been nothing short of heroic. Tens of thousands of health workers reached hundreds of millions of children with vaccine, in some of the most difficult conditions imaginable. Together, we have done what once seemed impossible: We have stopped polio in Africa.
Yet this progress, momentous as it is, is still fragile. As long as polio exists in the two remaining endemic countries of Pakistan and Afghanistan, the virus still has the potential to spread and to spark new outbreaks. Now, more than ever, we need the power of all of Rotary to carry us through to the end: not just a polio-free Africa, but a polio-free world.
Wherever you live, whether your country has just conquered polio or has been polio-free for decades, we need your voice, and your help. I ask all of you to read and use the materials in this tool kit to find ways to raise awareness in your community, and beyond. We need every Rotarian, in every Rotary club, to be talking about polio: making sure that media outlets report on our progress and our elected officials see polio eradication as a global priority. Your grassroots work helps drive the increased media coverage we have seen in the past year, which in turn drives global backing of our work to eradicate polio. Together, we will keep polio front and center in our communities and on our national agendas, keeping up the energy and the momentum that will push us through to the finish.
The battle in Africa has, for the moment, been won, but we need the strength of every Rotarian to help us win the war. Together, we will End Polio Now and truly Be a Gift to the World.
Warm regards,
K.R. Ravindran
President, Rotary International
The Dexter Rotary Club meets each Tuesday at the American Steakhouse. If you are interested in speaking or joining Rotary let us know. Please call Dee Loflin, Rotary President at 614-4804.
Please tell us something interesting about yourself:
“My career in real estate began in 1977 and I enjoy helping young couples find their first home. I had my own company, Flowers Realty, but now I am currently a broker/salesperson for Trammel and Son Realty. I am also still involved with my son's and grandson's fish farms and farming operations. I was married for 51 years to Bill Flowers, and now my children and grandchildren are the highlight of my life. I am expecting my first great grandchild in November.“
What made you choose our agency to provide your home health care?
“In the past, I had outpatient physical therapy and cardiac rehab at Southeast Hospital in Dexter and was pleased with their services so I chose Southeast Home Health.”
What do you enjoy most about home health therapy?
“The exercises make me feel better and stronger after I do them. The therapist motivate me to do better and continue my exercises when they are not there..”
Please share some of the goals you have for the future and how therapy might help you reach those goals:
“I would like to be more active and strong enough to not use a walker and to be able to work a few days each week in my office. '
The Home Health Spotlight is a courtesy of the caring professionals of Southeast Health! You have a choice in who will provide your home health services. Remember to request Southeast Home Health of Dexter or contact us at (573) 624-3511 for additional information.
Eligible blood and platelet donors are encouraged to choose their day to donate blood or platelets this summer.
There will be a blood drive at the Bloomfield High School on Saturday, July 18, 2015 from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. The school is located at 301 West Missouri Street.
Donated blood is perishable and must be constantly replenished to keep up with the demand. Red blood cells, with a shelf life of only 42 days, are the most frequently transfused blood component, and are always needed by hospitals.
Eligible donors can give red cells through either a regular whole blood donation or a double red cell donation, where available. Double red cell donations yield twice the usual amount of red cells in a single appointment and are accepted at select donation locations. Double red cell donors must meet additional eligibility criteria, which will be determined at the donation appointment.
Donors with all blood types are needed, especially those with types O negative, A negative and B negative. Whole blood can be donated every 56 days, and double red cells may be donated every 112 days, up to three times per year.
To find a donation opportunity or make an appointment to give blood, download the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visit redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767).
