DeFoor Brothers, LLC  and The Westin of Chattanooga will end the Stronger Together giveback with Blood Assurance’s ‘Community Strong’ campaign on Friday from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at 801 Pine St.

With over 4,000 bags and counting distributed into the community, the 23-day Stronger Together giveback addressed the need for essential food items in the wake of current world events, but as the effort comes to a close on Friday afternoon, the Stronger Together effort will end by addressing the critical need for O-, A-, A+, O+, and AB- blood types. 

Amy O Brien, account manager with Blood Assurance said, “As elective surgeries return to the Chattanooga-area, our inventory has plummeted, so through our partnership with West Village, we hope to offset the unprecedented number of cancellations and address our community’s critical need for blood donors.”

According to Ms. O’Brien, the complications of COVID-19 have caused the donation process to evolve with plenty of precaution, safety measures and advisement from the Center for Diseases Control. 

In order to minimize time spent on the donation bus, donors will be accepted through an online  appointment process. Under this new system, donors may enter their health history questions before arrival in order to expedite the donation process. One donor will be accepted for each 15-minute interval and to adhere to current regulations, no more than 10 people will be allowed to enter the bloodmobile. Sanitation, face masks, and an employee monitoring system that includes temperature checks and a battery of health questions before reporting for duty are in full effect. 

Tom Underwood, general manager of The Westin hotel said, “This is a great way for our community to take the torch as we bring our 23-day effort to a close. Like Blood Assurance says, we’re Community Strong and encourage as many people as possible to book an appointment between 10 and 3 o’clock.”

Every Monday through Friday for the past 23 days, a team of volunteers from The Westin have met at 212 West 8th St. to distribute 4,000 bags (and counting) of essential food items to those affected by the Chattanooga community’s recent string of difficult events. With one bag made available for each arriving car, and items varying from day to day, the effort successfully made its way into the hands that needed it most. 

“This effort was created to return the support we’ve received over the past three years,” said Mr. Underwood. “Ensuring that area residents possessed these essential food items was paramount to The Westin and the West Village community—it was our opportunity to give back to the people that shaped us."

For the ‘Stronger Together’ giveback effort, attendants adhere to health and safety protocols with gloved service, face masks and minimal social interaction. 

“This effort took a village and I’m proud of The Westin and our West Village teams for springing into action with their face masks and gloves held on tight,” said Mr. Underwood. “We’re stronger together.”