Set up as a contest between the Worcester Police Department and Worcester Fire Department, known as the Battle of the Badges, the real winners are the scores of people who need blood in the Worcester area, after the two departments had a friendly competition to see who could get more donors for the Red Cross Blood Drive at the DCU Center on July 2.
Several members of both departments turned out to donate, as well as their families, friends, and several local residents who just wanted to help. More than 100 people total donated blood that will save lives and help with the summertime lull in donations. “It’s police vs. fire – a friendly rivalry,” said Red Cross of America Account Manager Nancy Hurley. “Everybody who comes In promoted it within their departments, and do their family and friends, and we promoted it to the public at large.”
Every participant gets a vote, and the department with the most donors gets, well, bragging rights, but the goal, naturally, is to help as many people as possible.
“The Red Cross has a need, and this is a difficult time of year to collect,” Hurley said. “People are so busy going into the summer, but the need is still there. It’s been great to get their support, especially with the long weekend and the heat.”
“Summer is a difficult time,” said Jeff Hall, Red Cross spokesperson. “People are at the beach, on vacations. We have a lot of blood drives at local colleges, but they’re out of session right now. We’re at a historic point right now, where blood donation appointments, looking out over the next 60 or 90 days, are lower than they’ve probably been in twenty years.
The procedure takes about an hour, and each donation can save up to three people’s lives. New technology keeps track of where a donor’s blood goes, so they will know when it quite literally saves a life.
“The app is new now. It will tell you where your blood ends up,” Hall said. “It’ll give you a notification of where it went in the state, or out of the state sometimes. It tells you what hospital it went to. It closes the loop for the donor and keeps it front-of-mind to make your next appointment.
“That’s pretty good use of an hour,” Hurley said. “Every two seconds, somebody needs blood.” The DCU Center, which has hosted the drive in the past, has been very helpful, providing the space as well as refreshments, and even encouraging members of the Railers hockey team to stop by and donate.
The DCU Center’s Director of Marketing John LaHair said that the departments’ recruits often use the center as a training facility, conducting drills up and down the arena’s steps, among other activities.
“They use it to train. They come up on the arena side and run laps, they go up and down the stairs,” LaHair said. “It’s more than just a rivalry, it’s about making a difference in the community. Everybody that’s walked through the doors today is saving lives.”
LaHair said that the drive was held at the center many times, but the pandemic paused that pattern and it is just now ramping back up to pre-COVID levels. “We’re thrilled that after several years of not hosting it, people are coming out, they’re rolling up their sleeves, literally, and getting the job done,” LaHair said. “Everybody’s stepped up to the plate. The Railers are part of this. Obviously, the City of Worcester, and our team here at the DCU Center.”
Students from the United Way’s WooServes Program were also on hand to aid volunteers and keep track of each team’s score.
At about 3pm, Hurley said there were more than 80 donors, and she expected several more before the day was over.
“For a holiday weekend, that’s a good number,” she said.
Mike Vigeant, an officer in the Quinsigamond Community College Police Department, and his wife, Susan, donated blood, while their daughter, Danielle and her friend Hannah Somerset were volunteering.
Mike said he’s donated about 20 times, and his wife has almost as many times. He helped recruit others in his department.
“Just word of mouth with my folks. We have our own outreach person in the department, and we work very well with the Worcester Police Department.”
The girls, students at the Notre Dame Academy, were serving, in part to satisfy their community service requirement of 60 hours each during their junior and senior years.
“We can do 30 hours in the summertime, so we came here to get some hours,” Danielle said.
Scott Pham – a recruit with the WPD, said he was urged to donate, but he has another reason for coming.
“I want to beat the fire department,” he said. “It’s a little bit of competition. I’m afraid of needles, but it didn’t hurt as much as I thought.”
For more information, visit www.redcrossblood.org.
