Couldn’t Make It to Tackle Sickle Cell? Visit www.rwjuhdonorclub.org to Schedule A Blood Donation Appointment
(New Brunswick, NJ) – Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH), the Embrace Kids Foundation and Tackle Sickle Cell extend their sincere appreciation and gratitude to all who attended and donated blood at the 11th Annual Tackle Sickle Cell Blood Drive.
RWJUH’s Blood Services Team partnered with the Embrace Kids and former Rutgers and NFL stars Devin and Jason McCourty to host the event. A total of 132 presenting donors attended and 120 units of life-saving blood products were collected to address critically low blood supply shortages.
In addition to all who attended and donated blood, RWJUH, Embrace Kids and Tackle Sickle Cell thank the following businesses and organizations for helping make the event a success:
- Hansel & Griddle (Corporate Sponsor)
- Jersey Mike’s at The Yard, Rutgers University, College Avenue, New Brunswick, Store No. 1066 (Corporate Sponsor)
- Rutgers Delta Sigma Theta Chapter (Community Sponsor)
- Rutgers Lambda Alpha Upsilon Chapter (Community Sponsor)
“We are fortunate to have formed strong partnerships with so many local businesses, Rutgers University and community organizations who support our event by donating refreshments, their time and talent to ensure that each blood drive is successful,” said Embrace Kids Executive Director Armaan Saxena. “Embrace Kids is proud to work alongside RWJUH Blood Services and the McCourtys to raise awareness about sickle cell disease and collect critically needed blood donations.”
RWJBarnabas Health Blood Services Business Development Liaison Sally Wells added, “The winter months are especially challenging for blood centers and hospitals as donations tend to decline. This year in particular, we experienced weather-related blood drive cancellations leading up to this drive which made the donations we collected extremely important. We can’t thank everyone enough for showing their support and helping save lives through their donations.”
Blood and blood product donations are always needed. If you could not make it to Tackle Sickle Cell, you can donate at RWJUH’s Blood Center, located at the Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School Clinical Academic Building, Suite 4200, 125 Paterson Street, New Brunswick, NJ 08901. Appointments can be scheduled online at www.rwjuhdonorclub.org or by calling (732) 235-8100, ext. 221 or 248.
Former Rutgers football stars Devin and Jason McCourty have partnered with Embrace Kids and RWJUH Blood Services for 11 years to host the annual blood drive in support of their Tackle Sickle Cell Campaign. Devin and Jason McCourty were football standouts at Rutgers University before moving on to the NFL. Devin recently completed his 12th season with the New England Patriots. Jason retired after 13 seasons and now hosts Good Morning Football on the NFL Network.
The McCourty Twins have generously supported the campaign and given their time to promote and attend the blood drives, visiting with donors, fans, patients while donating blood themselves.
Since the blood drive’s inception, more than 1,800 units of blood have been collected positively impacting the lives of as many as 2,600 patients! The blood drive has traditionally been held in February to address seasonal blood shortages and is also held as part of RWJUH’s Black History Month activities to raise awareness about the need for specific and unique blood type donations that can support diverse patient populations.
In addition to this blood drive, the McCourtys and Tackle Sickle Cell will host the Walk for Children with Sickle Cell Family Friendly 5K and Lunch on Sunday, May 5 in Liberty State Park in Jersey City. For information or to register, please visit http://give.EmbraceKids.org/5K-2024.
About Embrace Kids Foundation
Embrace Kids Foundation, a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization based in New Brunswick, New Jersey, exists to help families whose children have cancer, sickle cell disease or other blood disorders. Each year, Embrace Kids provides over $1 million in services to children and families throughout the greater New Jersey area at absolutely no cost to these families. For more info, please visit www.EmbraceKids.org.
About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH), a 628-bed RWJBarnabas Health Facility, is New Jersey’s largest academic medical center through its deep partnership with Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. RWJUH is the flagship Cancer Hospital of Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. Its other Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, stroke care, neuroscience, orthopedics, bariatric surgery and women’s and children’s care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children’s Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). A Level 1 Trauma Center and the first designated Pediatric Trauma Center in the state, RWJUH’s New Brunswick campus serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness.
For information contact:
Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital: Peter Haigney
Office: 732-937-8568; Cell: 908-227-9317
peter.haigney@rwjbh.org