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FNB employees donate new blood pressure cuffs

BLOOD DONORS FROM the First National Bank & Trust, shown in front from left, include Pat Clarke, Dorleen Uhazie, and Verna Pollock. In the second row from left are Sandy Meier, Tanya DalSanto, Diane Aune, Caren Erickson, Donna Munn, Sue LaDuc, Mim Christensen, and Jean O’Dette. In back from left are Lisa Bosley, Mary Wenzel, Spring Porthouse, and Sandy Petroff.

IRON MOUNTAIN —  In celebration of First National Bank & Trust 130th anniversary, bank employees wanted to do something special for the nurses who volunteer at the U.P. Regional Blood drives in Kingsford.

Their existing blood pressure cuffs were old and not always accurate.  This prompted many of the ladies to bring in their personal cuffs from home.

About a dozen bank employees who regularly donate every eight weeks at the mobile U.P. Regional Blood collection site at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church in Kingsford noticed their problem.   They also had the solution — donate a new BP cuff to them as part of their community focused year-long anniversary celebration.

The first thing they did was to reach out to the TDS Pharmacy to find the most reliable and precise monitor on the market.   Steve Roell hooked them up with two Omron 10 Series Blood pressure monitors just in time for the next mobile drive on Feb. 20.

“Blood donors are so important. You never know if the next person who’s going to need blood is your sister, your mom, your dad, your child, your neighbor. There’s always a need and we didn’t want anyone to be turned away because of inaccurate BP readings,” noted Jean O’Dette, committee chair.

“People who give blood are considered heroes. Each time you give, you have the potential of saving three lives. We have a lot of heroes that work for First National Bank & Trust who all felt this was the right thing to do,”  she added.

The U.P. Regional Blood Center tries to collect 250 pints of whole blood in a week as well as seven platelet donations daily.  Platelet donations are taken by appointment in Marquette and Escanaba.

The four other sites in the U.P. are available to blood donors only by appointment: Hancock, Sault Ste. Marie and  in Iron Mountain at 1711 S. Stephenson Ave.   I

n addition, the center operates a bloodmobile which goes to sites around the Upper Peninsula to bring its services right to potential donors.

To make an appointment, call 906-774-1012.

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