Welcome to the January issue of Blood Drop.

In this Issue

	Happy New Year!
	December Heroes
	How Rare are You?

School Program Info

• Still need to schedule your blood drive? We are currently setting dates for April and May.
• Don't forget: The Hero Program runs through August 31, 2008. It's not too late to earn donation points for your school. Make sure to fill out a Hero Card when you give blood at any of our donor centers.
• Want to learn more about blood? Click here to read a glossary of terms.

Contact Information:
Lauren Bacon
School Program Coordinator
302-737-8405 ext. 796
schoolbloodprogram@bbd.org

Happy New Year!

Have you made your New Year's Resolutions yet? If not, here's one for you: resolve to give blood in 2008, or resolve to encourage others to give blood! Saving lives is the best resolution of all!

Did you know that every day on Delmarva, 370 blood donors are needed to ensure that area hospitals have an adequate supply of blood for their patients?

To schedule an appointment to give blood, call 1-888-8-BLOOD-8 or visit www.delmarvablood.org and click on "Donating Blood" to request an appointment online.

December Heroes

Thank you to the schools who hosted lifesaving blood drives in December!  We collected 721 pints of blood, which is 293 pints more than in December 2006!  The weeks leading up to the holidays can be busy, but the need for blood continues, and we thank you for your commitment to saving lives. Click here to view photos, and click here to view blood drive results from the 2007-2008 school year.

How Rare are You?

The rarest type of blood is the one not available when you need it.  Here's a list of blood types, and how common each type is.

O Positive -- 1 person in 3

A Positive -- 1 person in 3

B Positive -- 1 person in 12

O Negative -- 1 person in 15 (O Negative donors are universal-- anyone can receive O Negative blood.)

A Negative -- 1 person in 16

AB Positive -- 1 person in 29

B Negative -- 1 person in 67

AB Negative -- 1 person in 167