Prior Lake, Minn. – The public is invited to participate in the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community’s holiday blood drive on Tuesday, December 10 from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. at Dakotah! Sport and Fitness.

Blood donors are desperately needed. According to Memorial Blood Centers, the SMSC’s blood drive partner, someone in the local community needs blood every two seconds. Typically during the holiday season, blood donations decline while demand increases. All blood types are needed, but especially type O, the universal donor. Each pint of donated blood can potentially save as many as three lives.

In order to give blood, a donor must be healthy, weigh at least 110 pounds, be at least 17 years old, and not have donated blood in the last 56 days. Donors go through a brief screening process as part of the appointment.

Please make a blood donation appointment by calling the SMSC Wellness Coordinators at 952-233-2965. A limited number of walk-ins can also be accepted. The entire appointment takes about an hour.

26 years of SMSC blood drives

For more than 26 years, the SMSC has sponsored blood drives. The SMSC has held 43 blood drive events since 1998 for Minnesota-based Memorial Blood Centers, resulting in 3,104 donated units of blood. In 2012 alone, the SMSC ranked 19th in blood drive donations, with 339 units collected. It is the only community-sponsored blood drive in the top 20, with all of the others being corporate drives.

The SMSC’s 2014 blood drives are scheduled for April 15, August 12, and December 9.

About the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community

The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community is a federally recognized, sovereign Indian tribe located southwest of Minneapolis/St. Paul. With a focus on being a good neighbor, good steward of the earth, and good employer, the SMSC is committed to community partnerships, charitable donations, a healthy environment, and a strong economy. The SMSC and the SMSC Gaming Enterprise (Mystic Lake Casino Hotel and Little Six Casino) are the largest employer in Scott County. Out of a Dakota tradition to help others, the SMSC has also donated nearly $272 million to organizations and causes and paid more than $7.6 million for shared local road projects since 1992, in addition to funding its own infrastructure and contributing generously to regional governments and infrastructure.