MARYVILLE, Mo. – The Student Senate at Northwest Missouri State University is sponsoring its annual winter blood drive in cooperation with the Community Blood Center to boost blood supplies in northwest Missouri.

The Community Blood Center is the primary supplier of blood and blood components in the region, serving more than 65 local hospitals and medical centers. 

Blood from volunteer donors assists cancer patients recovering from the rigors of chemotherapy, auto accident victims needing blood for emergency surgeries or mothers needing blood as the result of traumatic birth deliveries. It is estimated three lives are saved with every unit collected.

In September, for the second consecutive year, the Community Blood Center recognized Northwest and its Student Senate as the top university among participating institutions in the area during the previous calendar year. Northwest donors provided 768 units of blood, more than 530 more than the second-place university in 2015.

For more information, contact Student Senate’s Civic Committee at (660) 562-1218 or the Community Blood Center at (800) 245-7035.

The blood drive will take place from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday in the Tower View Room, located on the third floor of the J.W. Jones Student Union.

Interested donors may register online by visiting www.savealifenow.org. There, click the “Schedule an appointment” icon and enter the code: NWMSU.