Blood is Medicine, Keeping Kids in the Fight
Every September, Childhood Cancer Awareness Month shines a light on children with cancer and the challenges they face. Blood is medicine for so many cancer warriors, and our blood products help them keep up the good fight.
One such child was Aiden Howard-Maul, who was only four years old when he received a Stage 3 Nephroblastoma diagnosis. After undergoing surgery, his chemotherapy regimen would wipe out his platelets and red blood cells, and he was the recipient of several blood transfusions. Now in remission for more than a decade, we were grateful for the opportunity to check in on Aiden - check out his story below!
With our renewed focus on childhood cancer, we took the opportunity to revisit and refresh our digital footprint of "Blood is Medicine" outreach materials, available in our Canva folder here!
We're Stronger Together
September is Sickle Cell Awareness Month. Patients with sickle cell disease can experience painful sickle cell crises, for which blood transfusions are a common form of treatment. It's why recruiting a diverse donor base is so important!
Throughout the month of September, we highlight our Red4Life sickle cell program. Through donation, advocacy, and hosting drives, the efforts of our Red4Life partners mean the world to someone living with sickle cell disease.
We recently refreshed our sickle cell assets for 2026, featuring our new "Stronger Together" logo and an emphasis on our rich ruby red branding, to differentiate it from the navy blue used in many of our initiatives. The Canva assets can be found here!
Additionally, our T-shirt offerings now include our classic “Red4Life” logo shirt (quantities are limited), as well as the new strong and simple “Stronger Together” message. Both shirts are available on our Donor Loyalty store, and can be redeemed for 800 points each!
Celebrating 5 Years of BERC
A critical element of blood industry disaster preparedness is celebrating its 5-year anniversary. Blood providers across the U.S. established the national Blood Emergency Readiness Corps (BERC) in late summer of 2021, creating a new structure for blood providers to support one another’s blood supply in times of crisis.
BERC was established during the COVID-19 pandemic, a time of widespread challenges to blood collection. BERC establishes a process for blood centers to work together and plan ahead for mass casualty events and natural disasters, ensuring their ability to meet emerging needs without delay or uncertainty.
Participating blood centers commit to collecting extra units on a rotating “on call” schedule (once every three weeks) that is available for immediate response during a BERC Activation. The BERC network has been activated 18 times over the last five years, providing more than 1600 units of blood as an immediate response to spikes in blood utilization.
Learn more here!
Badgers Bleed Red & White
The Abbott/Big Ten We Give Blood Drive is officially underway, and the competition is already heating up! Through December 4, blood donors across the country can support their favorite Big Ten school while earning an awesome school-themed T-shirt. With a live leaderboard keeping score, the University of Wisconsin Badgers already jumped out to an early lead. After winning the challenge last year, they're ready to defend their title!
Abbott's Madison office is already showing some serious Badger pride, hosting not one, but TWO blood drives this week with nearly 100 people signing up to give. Plenty of those donors logged their donations for Wisconsin, helping the Badgers build that lead. Will Wisconsin go back-to-back? We're not even close to the end of the first half, but right now, the Hawkeyes and Fighting Illini have some catching up to do!
We're Hiring - Tell Your Friends!
We're hosting open interviews on Tuesday, September 8 from 11AM - 6PM. Learn about all available positions and our life-saving mission at ImpactLife!
- Full-time positions available
- Entry Level positions available
Take a look at all of the available positions here!
EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT
Lindsay Erhardt-Hansen
Manager, Regional Development in Donor Relations | Ottumwa, IA
![Lindsay Erhardt-Hansen, Manager, Regional Development in Donor Relations | Ottumwa, IA]()
Time at ImpactLife
Almost 6 years!
Blood Type
O Negative
What runs through your veins?
Coffee, tea and music!
What's your favorite thing about being part of our team?
The people, whether it be my great team, our blood drive coordinators or the donors; everyone is here to save lives and it shows!
When you are not at work you can be found?
Spending time with my son and husband watching movies, playing board games or doing something outside, unless I am at a concert!