Police win Battle of Badges blood drive in Ceres

The crest for the Ceres Battle of the Badges blood drive held Monday was made with a crossed ax and baton – certainly two ways of drawing blood. But fortunately for the 57 donors at the Ceres Community Center, phlebotomists used hypodermic needles.

The Police Department came out on top in the inaugural event, but police, fire and Delta Blood Bank all agreed the winners are the patients who will benefit from the blood donations.

Sixty-seven people showed up to give during the five-hour drive at the Ceres Community Center, said police Detective Carlos Quiroz. Fifty-seven were able to donate a pint each after the remainder had to be turned away for iron deficiency or other health concerns. All who attended could cast a vote for either the fire or police departments. When the votes were tallied, the results were 44 for police, 19 for fire and three undecided.

“We won, we beat ’em, I’m actually shocked, because people always come out for the fire guys” in similar rivalries, Quiroz said.

The detective said he got the Battle of the Badges idea from the Tracy Police Department, which has had a competitive blood drive with that city’s Fire Department for several years. “I thought it was a great idea,” Quiroz said. “There’s been a lot of negative stuff about law enforcement in the news and I thought this could help change that.”

The Ceres departments used social media and a lot of word of mouth to draw donors. “A couple of people walked in because of the LED sign we had out on Whitmore,” he said. “We had great turnout. Delta was shooting for 40 donors, but I went big and was shooting for 80.”

“It really exceeded expectations,” agreed blood drive coordinator Lisbeth Garcia of Delta Blood Bank. “It’s August, and summer – June, July and August – tends to be hard for us. People are busy, go on vacations, and donations tend to go down. Now school’s starting, but more people came than we expected, which is always great.”

She, too, was surprised at the Police Department’s victory. Delta handles the Tracy drive, where the Fire Department has won almost every time. “I told Carlos, ‘Don’t expect to win,’” Garcia said. “But there are no losers in this – everyone helps our inventory, our patients. Still, bragging rights are always nice.”

Delta Blood Bank always seeks donations. Its center in Modesto, at 1900 W. Orangeburg Ave., is open Mondays through Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. To make an appointment, call 888-942-5663.

Addresses, hours and contact information for donation centers in Ceres, Manteca, Turlock, Sonora and Angels Camp are available at www.deltabloodbank.org/locations.

Today from 2 to 7 p.m., the Escalon Community Blood Drive is being held at Escalon Christian Reformed Church, 2203 California St. Call 209-838-7223.

On Tuesday, the Patterson Community Blood Drive will be held from 3 to 7 p.m. at Fire Station 2, 1950 Keystone Pacific Parkway. That drive is held the third Tuesday of every other month, Garcia said.

And a week later, on Aug. 25, a blood drive will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Institute of Technology, 5601 Stoddard Road, Modesto.

This story was originally published August 11, 2015 at 10:00 AM with the headline "Police win Battle of Badges blood drive in Ceres."