Our blood institute is launching a sweepstakes to encourage blood donations, where participants can win a vacation valued at up to $10,000 to a destination of their choice.
Jacqueline Chappell of Our Blood Institute introduced the campaign and said that for the first time the organization was allowing donors to choose their vacation destination.
“We’ve given away vacations before, but usually they’ve been cruises,” Chappell said. “This time we’re letting the winner choose where they want to go. That’s really exciting for us.”
The competition “Up to 10,000 holiday gifts” began on Monday and runs until August 18th.
The prize pool, originally set at $3,000, is now $5,000 and the final amount could be $10,000.
With this campaign we want to counteract the current shortage of blood donations, which is exacerbated by the summer break in blood drives at high schools, in which 30% of donors usually participate.
“We are at a more critical time right now. We are trying to avoid an urgent blood drive and this donation is part of our efforts to encourage donations and show our appreciation to our donors,” Chappell said.
In addition to the grand prize, OBI is offering $500 in gift certificates for gas or flights so that even winners who did not win the grand prize can plan their own trips.
As part of the campaign, donors will also receive a commemorative “Bigfoot Returns” T-shirt and an admission ticket to Frontier City or Hurricane Harbor.
“Due to popular demand, we re-released the Bigfoot shirts and they were a success,” Chappell said.
To participate in the raffle, individuals can donate blood at one of the mobile campaigns or at one of OBI’s donation centers.
While spontaneous visits are welcome, appointments are recommended and can be made through the Institute’s website at obi.org.
“Whether you’re donating blood to win a holiday or simply to save lives, every donation helps,” Chappell said.
