Community Blood Center honors Miami with Gold Partner status

Some of Miamians who donate: Front row: Greg Reese, Terry Ruff, Jeff Leytham. Back row: Mark Peterson, Claire Wagner

Community Blood Center (CBC) recognized Miami University as a Gold Partner.

The Leading the Way LifeSaving Ambassadors Club is a CBC recognition program honoring sponsor groups for outstanding performance in reaching or exceeding blood drive collection goals. 

CBC presents a plaque to winning sponsors on an annual basis. The award is based on three levels of achievement:

• Platinum Partner - Awarded for accomplishing 100 percent or higher of the blood drive collection goals.
• Gold Partner - Awarded for accomplishing 95-99 percent of the blood drive collection goals.
• Silver Partner - Awarded for accomplishing 90-94 percent of the blood drive collection goals.

The five faculty and staff blood drives held during 2016 drew a total of 338 units of whole blood, 98 percent of the collection target of 346 units. Susan Gibson, senior personnel technician in the department of human resources, leads the faculty and staff donor recruitment effort.

Miami University and Community Blood Center have been partners for more than 35 years. Seventeen blood drives are held each year on campus and are open to Miami students, faculty, staff and the general public.

Ten of these blood drives were focused on Miami student donors during 2016, with a total of 679 units of blood collected. More than 50 organizations participate each year, with many co-sponsoring a blood drive each semester. 

The Panhellenic Society and the Interfraternity Council sponsor an annual two-day “Greek Week” blood drive every September. The Miami Greek community is a strong supporter of this service activity, having brought in up to 600 donations in past years.