On Sept. 29, Bloodworks Northwest will have a grand opening for its new blood donation center in Renton.
The ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Renton Donor Center will be from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Renton donation center. Bloodworks Northwest President and CEO Curt Bailey and Executive Vice President of Blood Services Vicki Finson will attend the ceremony, along with Renton Mayor Armondo Pavone, Renton City Councilmember Ed Prince and CEO Valley Medical Center Jeannine Grinnell.
“We are thrilled to bring a bigger and better donation center to our community,” said Bailey. “Blood donation is vital to the health and well-being of our community. Our new donor center in one of Washington’s ten largest cities will make it easier for people to donate blood, encouraging them to step up and save lives.”
After the ceremony, there will also be a tour of the facility and complimentary grilled cheese sandwiches and beverages, provided by Franz Seattle Sourdough Baking Company Grilled Cheese Machine and Megabites Deli.
For more efficiency and faster processing times, the Bloodworks Renton Donor Center is located across the street from the Bloodworks testing and processing lab in Time Square Business Park of Renton, which Finson says was chosen due to its proximity to the recently closed Tukwila location.
“Traffic delays in getting blood processed can be a concern. A unit of blood donated at the new Renton Donor Center will now be in our laboratory within minutes and starting its journey toward helping a patient in need,” she said. “We look forward to our loyal Tukwila center donors following us 1.2 miles to our new location in Renton and welcoming many new donors as we grow.”
After the American Red Cross announced earlier this year that the country is facing a blood donation crisis, the need for a donation center in Renton is especially important. In a press release from Bloodworks Northwest, said that 95% of the blood supply in western Washington and Oregon come from their organization and that it takes 1,000 donations a day to provide “a safe and reliable blood supply for those in need of transfusions for cancer, trauma, and surgeries in the Seattle area.”
According to Tracy Rabsky, a public relations representative for Bloodworks, blood donations are currently stable for the first time in two years but donations are projected to be low in October. “There has been a national and regional crisis due to COVID fall-out and Bloodworks has been trying to get the word out to help with this need,” said Rabsky.
The new donation center, which is two blocks from the IKEA, will be open seven days a week and it is expected that Bloodworks will be able to collect more than 18,000 donations in the next year. Along with a 10% increase in available donor beds, the center offers cell phone charging outlets at every bench, free parking and easy access to shopping centers and freeways.
The Renton Donor Center is located at 660 Southwest 39th Street #100 in Renton and accepted donations include double red cells, plasmapheresis, plateletpheresis, platelets plus red cells, whole blood for all blood types and for Type O+ and Type O- donors.
Donation appointments can be scheduled by calling 800-398-788 or visiting https://www.bloodworksnw.org/donate.
