Three non-profits on the Suncoast team up to change a live and save a life

SARASOTA – Suncoast Blood Bank and Manasota Goodwill team up to help change the lives of those less fortunate living on the Suncoast.

Suncoast Blood Bank Senior Donor Group Representative Cindy Winning helped organized this drive looking to give back to the community they serve. “This collaboration is what it’s about, you know working together with two very well respected community partners,” said Winning.

Winning says each month the two non-profits seek a third organization to help with donations efforts. This month Street of Paradise, a non-profit helping those living on the streets, was chosen.

“We thought it was a great collaboration,” said Winning. “They [Streets of Paradise] are doing a warehouse clean up today. So it’s a matter of reorganizing, pulling out what will work for re-homing our homeless, and Goodwill benefits from that and the volunteers for Streets of Paradise are donating on the blood mobile. Win, win!”

Ray Halperin just started volunteering with Streets of Paradise. He says his wife has been volunteering with the non-profit for a couple of years now and it was his time to join in to help others.

“It’s one of the ways that you give back to your community and what a glorious day to be out and about,” said Halperin.

Halperin says seeing three non-profits come together gives him hope that others will step up for the next drive. “When you get all three organizations kinda working together it becomes the sum of the parts is greater than the parts,” he said. 

More than a dozen volunteers gave up their Sunday morning to help out, some as early as 9 a.m. Winning says these events benefit all involved especially the blood bank, which is facing a shortage of  O and B negative blood.

“Change a life through the power of donating goods, save a life through the power of a blood donation,” said Winning.

To get involved for future drives visit the Suncoast Blood Bank web page or contact Winning at cwinning@sbb.org

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