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Derby Blood Drives Rolling Out Coast to Coast

Good Causes >

PeninsulaRollerGirlsRoller derby is out for blood (yours). Brown Paper Tickets and the Red Cross team up again for the third annual Make ‘em Bleed blood drives. The efforts expand this year with New England leagues rolling into town and rolling up their sleeves.

From August 2 to December 31, athletes from California, Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire will encourage donors with autographs, photo opportunities, skate cookies, temporary tattoos and more.

Why the party?

As events people, we like a good party. But it’s more than that. On August 13, roller derby celebrates its 80th birthday. This year also marks the 15th anniversary of the sport’s rebirth. “We are creating a celebration at every blood drive event,” said Annelise Sexton, P.R. manager for San Francisco’s B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls.

Although the treats and chances to meet derby athletes are definitely reasons to come out, making a real difference is the reward. A single donation can save multiple lives. Blood supplies tend to be low in the summer and the Make ’em Bleed drives come at a critical time for blood supply. The 2014 drives collected enough blood to save 660 lives and attracted more donors than any other blood drive series in California.

Jerry Seltzer, our roller derby outreach lead hopes to double the record-breaking donations from last year. Let’s do it. If your league is located in California or New England and you’re interested in scheduling a blood drive, email jerry [at] brownpapertickets [dot] com.

New blood drives will be added weekly, so check back often. Walkups are welcome, but appointments are recommended. Call 1-800-RED CROSS or visit redcrossblood.org and enter the sponsor code: DERBY.

2015 Make ’em Bleed Schedule

Sunday, Aug. 2 (Worcester, MA)
Worcester Roller Derby from 10AM to 3PM at Horgan Skating Arena, 410 Oxford St. Auburn, Mass.

Saturday, Aug. 21 (Livermore, CA)
Quad City Derby Bombshells from 1 to 7PM at the Asbury United Methodist Church, 4743 East Ave.

Sunday, Aug. 23 (Middleboro, Massachusetts)
Mass Attack Roller Derby from 10AM to 3PM at the Middleboro Elks Club, 24 High St.

Sunday, Aug. 30 (Trumbull, CT)
Connecticut Roller Girls from 9:30AM to 2:30PM at the Red Cross Bus parked at the Redwood Roller Rink, 1303 Main St.

Saturday, Sept. 5 (Rohnert Park, CA)
Resurrection Derby Girls from 11AM to 5PM at the Red Cross Bus parked in front of Cal Skate, 6100 Commerce Blvd.

Saturday, Sept. 5 (Redwood City, CA)
Peninsula Roller Girls from 10:00AM to 4:00PM at Redwood City Women’s Club, 149 Clinton St.

Saturday, Sept. 12 (Antioch, CA)
Undead Bettys from 10 AM to 4PM at Evolve Aikido & Movement Center, 1211 Auto Center Drive (across from Midas).

Sunday, Sept. 13 (Fitchburg, MA)
Mass Maelstrom Roller Derby 11AM to 4PM at Great Wolf Lodge, 150 Great Wolf Drive.

Saturday, Sept. 19 (San Francisco, CA)
B.ay A.rea D.erby Girls from 10AM to 4PM at the American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter office, 1663 Market St.

Monday, Oct. 12 (Santa Cruz)
Santa Cruz Derby Girls from 9AM to 3PM at the LDS Church, 220 Elk Street.

Saturday, Oct. 31 (Dover, NH)
Seacoast Roller Derby from 9AM to 2PM at Dover Bowl, 8878 Central Ave.

Saturday, Oct. 31 (San Jose, CA)
Silicon Valley Derby Girls at Silver Creek Sports Complex, 800 Embedded Way from 10AM to 3PM.

Tuesday, Dec. 1 (Concord, NH)
Granite State Roller Derby, Everett Arena (Bus), 11 AM to 5 PM.

Saturday, Dec. 7 (Keene, NH)
Elm City Derby Damez from noon to 5PM at the St. Bernard Church, 185 Main Street.

Photo Credit:Tom Jung/San Mateo Daily Journal (Peninsula Roller Girls)