Make wishtv.com your home page

Fans ‘bleed blue’ for Colts-backed blood drive at Lucas Oil Stadium

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – More than 1,900 people registered to donate blood Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium for Indiana’s largest single-day blood drive.

The “Bleed Blue Blood Drive” – presented by the Colts, Indiana Blood Center and other groups – drew hundreds of fans with football-themed incentives and open-field activities.

The holiday season marks a difficult stretch every year for blood banks nationwide.

The Indiana Blood Center supply has dipped “significantly” with regular donors going on vacation or becoming too busy to keep appointments, spokesperson Andrea Fagan explained.

She estimated their supply to be 10 percent lower during the holidays and commended donors who understood the urgency of giving blood at the Bleed Blue event.

“I come every year because it feels good to help,” one blood drive participant said. “I also wanted one of the footballs!”

Donors received limited edition Colts footballs and were invited to stay for the Colts’ annual Holiday Fest activities featuring photos with Santa until 1 p.m., autograph sessions with players and cheerleaders until 3 p.m., a screening of “The Grinch” on the Stadium’s HD monitors at 12 p.m. and “A Christmas Story” at 1:45 p.m.

The holiday activities are free and open to the public; participating in the blood drive is not a requirement.

The blood drive ran until 3 p.m.

Appointments can be made at the following link: BLEED BLUE.