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Sickle Cell in the Park 2019
July 13, 2019 @ 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM
The Sickle Cell Foundation, INC. Presents:
The 4th Annual
“Sickle Cell in the Park”
This year’s Sickle Cell in the Park Health Fair will focus on the importance of blood donations. “African Americans Hold a Unique Power to Save Lives.” Individuals with Sickle Cell Disease utilize blood transfusions to slow the harmful, and in many cases deadly, effects of a sickle cell crisis. However, the problem is all too often it is very difficult to locate blood that matches individuals with sickle cell disease due to the extremely limited supply of African American and other minority blood donors.
Here is the paradox that the sickle cell community faces: The majority of sickle cell patients are African American and rely on genetically similar Blood Transfusions for treatment. However, African Americans are not regular blood donors and represent the smallest pool of blood donors in America. Sickle cell disease is a rare condition that impacts the red blood cells causing the blood cells to die more quickly than healthy red blood cells. This dramatically reduces the amount of oxygen in the body leading to fatigue, strokes, chronic pain, and a whole host of mild, severe, life threatening and LIFE LONG issues. Sickle cell disease primarily, and disproportionately, affects African Americans in the United States. One of the primary ways to treat individuals in a sickle cell crisis is with a blood transfusion. When a sickle cell patient experiences a Sickle Cell Crisis or if their red blood cell count drops to a dangerous level they are given blood transfusions. Blood transfusions are more effective when the blood donor is genetically similar to the blood recipient. With minorities and African Americans being among the lowest donor pools in our country, it is very difficult for sickle cell patients to be transfused with genetically similar blood resulting in transfusions where only the blood type matches. After years of being transfused with blood that is not genetically can lead to anti-body development and many other issues that can be life threatening.
That’s why this year’s focus at Sickle Cell in the Park will be blood donations with OneBlood and the Big Red Bus! JOIN US TO HELP SAVE LIVES!! By donating blood you will not only be saving the life of an individual with sickle cell disease but the lives of many others that rely on a blood transfusion during a very difficult time in their lives!
On July 13, 2019 from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm JOIN US at Cascade Park in the Capital City Amphitheater for FREE FOOD, DRINKS, FREE HEALTH SCREENINGS, LOCAL HEALTH VENDORS, MUSIC and MUCH MORE!
For more information regarding genetics in blood and blood donations, check out the links below.
⇒Watch Lia’s story on blood donation and sickle cell disease here.⇐
⇒Read the New York Times article “The Intersection of Race and Blood”.⇐
If you have any questions, if would like to set up a table, or if you would like to volunteer call the Sickle Cell Foundation, Inc. at (850) 222-2355.