Submission #16250 by Chizuk Amuno Brotherhood - Baltimore, MD (1106)
I have read the 2021 Torch Awards Program Guidelines.
Save 100 lives in 20 Minutes
Shomrei Ha’aretz
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Pikuach Nefesh, saving a life is one of the highest mitzvot that can be done. Our blood drive has won awards Nationally from the Red Cross for the quantity of blood donated. This guide shows how our blood drive is structured and publicised.
1. For decades our brotherhood sponsored 2 blood drives per year.
2. In 2014, we doubled the number of drives to 4 per year, all motivated by stressing that 1 “save up to 3 lives with one donation” FACT.
3. We tried for years to get to 6 but getting a date that worked with the Red Cross, the synagogue and the nearly 1 month of Jewish holidays every Fall, kept us to 5 drives the last few years. Last year, due to a schedule mishap we had to push our December 2019 drive into early January 2019. This enabled us to hit 6 drives this year for the first time. More importantly it allows us to easily schedule 6 drives every year going forward. That means we’ll be able to an additional 10 drives over the next decade. Based on our current donation rate we’ll collect about 1,000 additional donations helping to save up to 3,000 additional precious lives over those 10 years compared to what we would have accomplished at our former 5-drive/year production.
4. This year, instead of treating each drive as it’s own campaign, we announced a theme for the entire 6-drive year. This year’s theme: The 2019 Campaign to Save 1,000 Lives.
5. This yearly architectures serves us many ways:
a. We have a target that excites & motivates us.
h. That target also animates our growing community of donors. They feel invested in a group effort to accomplish something significant, as well as being an integral part of a significant & meaningful endeavor.
i. Every year going forward we’ll increase our yearly goal.
2. In 2014, we doubled the number of drives to 4 per year, all motivated by stressing that 1 “save up to 3 lives with one donation” FACT.
3. We tried for years to get to 6 but getting a date that worked with the Red Cross, the synagogue and the nearly 1 month of Jewish holidays every Fall, kept us to 5 drives the last few years. Last year, due to a schedule mishap we had to push our December 2019 drive into early January 2019. This enabled us to hit 6 drives this year for the first time. More importantly it allows us to easily schedule 6 drives every year going forward. That means we’ll be able to an additional 10 drives over the next decade. Based on our current donation rate we’ll collect about 1,000 additional donations helping to save up to 3,000 additional precious lives over those 10 years compared to what we would have accomplished at our former 5-drive/year production.
4. This year, instead of treating each drive as it’s own campaign, we announced a theme for the entire 6-drive year. This year’s theme: The 2019 Campaign to Save 1,000 Lives.
5. This yearly architectures serves us many ways:
a. We have a target that excites & motivates us.
h. That target also animates our growing community of donors. They feel invested in a group effort to accomplish something significant, as well as being an integral part of a significant & meaningful endeavor.
i. Every year going forward we’ll increase our yearly goal.
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Original Program