Rivals for life: Civil War Blood Drive back for 14th year

For the 14th consecutive year, Oregon State University and the University of Oregon alumni associations – in conjunction with the American Red Cross and Lane Blood Center (part of BloodWorks Northwest) – are sponsoring the Civil War Blood Drive.

The three-week blood drive campaign is designed to unite students, faculty, alumni and fans with a shared goal to help save lives by giving blood.

The Civil War Blood Drive runs from Nov. 1 through Nov. 22 and comprises hundreds of blood drives throughout Oregon and Clark County. All presenting blood and platelet donors at participating Red Cross and Lane Blood Center blood drives will have an opportunity to enter a drawing for a pair of tickets to the Civil War game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene on Nov. 27.*

Additionally, all presenting donors can cast their vote for either the Oregon State University Beavers or the University of Oregon Ducks. The university with the most votes at the conclusion of the campaign will win the coveted Civil War Blood Drive trophy.

During its 13-year history, the Civil War Blood Drive has brought in nearly 92,000 blood and platelet donors. Oregon State University holds a narrow 7-6 lead after winning last year’s vote by the slimmest margin to date. Daily vote updates can be found on the event website.

This year’s slate of participating blood drives includes special, multi-day drives at Oregon State University and the University of Oregon. These drives alone are projected to collect more than 1,700 pints of blood.

Oregon State University Blood Drive

Nov. 9 to Nov. 12 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily at the Memorial Union Ballroom

Nov. 13 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at United Methodist Church (1165 NW Monroe Ave.)

University of Oregon Blood Drive

Nov. 16 to Nov. 20 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily at the Gerlinger Annex and Lillis Business Complex

The holidays can be a challenging time of year to collect blood and this friendly competition helps to ensure blood products are available for patients in need during this time period. No matter what team they support, blood donors can help spread hope this holiday season by giving something that really means something – the gift of life.

To schedule an appointment to donate blood and participate in this annual event, contact the Red Cross at 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or Lane Blood Center at (541) 484-9111 or search for blood drives at www.civilwarblooddrive.com.

Meanwhile, The PacificSource Healthy Life Fan Challenge commences on Sunday as well, and Duck and Beaver fans statewide will be united in a friendly competition to encourage, achieve, and take an active role in healthy living.

By pledging to take part in the PacificSource Healthy Life Fan Challenge, which runs Nov. 1 through Nov. 30, participants will be taking steps toward making themselves and their community healthier, while raising funds for Oregon nonprofits in the process.

Now in its fifth year, the Healthy Life Fan Challenge – previously known as the Healthy Life Civil War Challenge – has expanded beyond Oregon to include Idaho and Montana. Bronco and Vandal fans in Idaho, and Grizzly and Bobcat fans in Montana will also be taking part in their own statewide Healthy Life Fan Challenges during the month of November.

Each week of the four-week Challenge, PacificSource is asking all Oregonians, to pledge to go healthy in one of three categories: physical activity, healthy eating, or stress reduction. Throughout the month, fans can visit healthylifechallenge.org to take the PacificSource Healthy Life Fan pledge, which can include one or more of the following healthy habits:

Get Moving: Add 30 minutes of physical activity per day
Eat Healthy: Eat at least five servings of fruit and veggies per day
Stress Less: Practice deep breathing or other relaxation techniques for a few minutes each day, or reduce stress by getting eight hours of sleep each night

“The Healthy Life Fan Challenge is a fun, simple way for college football fans throughout the state to participate in a healthy rivalry while improving their health and the health of Oregon communities in the process,” said Alexa Shook, director of PacificSource Health Promotion and Wellness.

“Through our partnership with the University of Oregon and Oregon State University, we can help build healthier and stronger populations and create lifelong healthy habits for fans of both schools, regardless of who prevails in the Civil War on Nov. 27.”

For every pledge received, PacificSource Healthy Life will donate one dollar across two nonprofit organizations that provide prevention and wellness programs to the communities they serve. This year’s beneficiaries of the PacificSource Healthy Life Fan Challenge are the Girls on the Run of Portland and Northwest Kidney Kids.

“I’ll always be a Duck at heart,” said Jordan Kent, former UO football, basketball and track star, “but during the month of November, I will be rooting for all Oregonians – regardless of their school affiliation – to move more, eat healthy and stress less.”

PacificSource has long been committed to improving the health of its members and the communities it serves. The Healthy Life initiative is part of PacificSource’s commitment as a community-based health plan to lead, advocate, and collaborate to help build healthier communities by providing a means of support to positively impact health behavior change.

To learn more about the PacificSource Healthy Life Fan Challenge and pledge to participate in this year’s event, visit www.healthylifechallenge.org.