“Bikers for Blood” brings in blood donations for Red Cross

Thursday was the 12th annual “Bikers for Blood” donation event in Pocatello.

“Bikers for Blood” is sponsored by the POW-MIA group, who partnered with the American Red Cross to get donations.

Jennifer Bowen, marketing and advertising with POW-MIA, said the event started 12 years ago when one of POW-MIA’s members had a family member in need of a lot of blood. They’ve done it every year since.

The goal is to get at least 70 units of blood and they’ve surpassed that almost every year. Bowen said the event is a great way for them to give back to the community and they always get a great response from the community.

“We are so fortunate and this community is amazing,” Bowen said. “And people that take this opportunity to give the gift of life, especially at this time of year, especially when everybody’s schedules are so busy. We get a phenomenal response.”

Bowen said the response on Thursday had been great again and so they hope that when final numbers come in, they will beat the goal again this year.

POW-MIA also had some gifts available for people to look at and shop for, and treats for those who donated. Bowen said they plan to keep doing this event for many years to come.