One of Canada’s largest blood donor groups has partnered with Canadian Blood Services to encourage Kelowna’s South Asian community to support Canada’s Lifeline.
Sikh Nation’s annual blood donation drive will be taking place on Saturday, Nov. 6 in Kelowna this year. The campaign embraces a vision that all humans should live a safe and happy life, and Sikh Canadians are expected to remember their past while donating blood and plasma to help patients in need while participating in this event.
“The Blood Donation Campaign led by the Sikhs represent a look to the past and a view to the future, coming together as humans around the world,” reads the Sikh Nation website.
Since the group’s first event in 1999, Sikh Nation members have helped over 150,000 patients with their donations according to a Canadian Blood Services press release. Sikh Nation is on track this year to make its largest annual contribution to patients in Canada, which makes the group the largest contributor to Canadian Blood Services’ Partners for Life program.
Bunvir Kaur, a Sikh Nation member, will be helping to organize the event in Kelowna on Saturday. Kaur’s father, Jadvinder Singh Nijjer, began organizing the first Blood Donation event in Kelowna almost 20 years ago with the help of local Sikh community members. Kaur wanted to honour his legacy by continuing his legacy of service to others.
“About 20 years ago, my father had the opportunity to meet the founders at one of the Blood Donation by Sikh Nation campaigns held in B.C.’s Lower Mainland,” says Sikh Nation member Bunvir Kaur in a press release. “He was touched to see the impact they were making in the community and he felt in his heart that he somehow needed to get involved.”
Sikh Nation’s Blood Donation event will take place at the Kelowna plasma donor centre at the Orchard Park Shopping Centre from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 6. This year, Kelowna’s Sikh community members hope to fill 49 open appointments to help patients.
Those interested can visit the Canadian Blood Services website or the Sikh Nation website for more information.
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