“I GAVE THE GIFT of life today” read the bright red stickers on the shirts of blood donors on Sunday, July 29, when St. Nicholas of Tolentine parish, Jamaica, sponsored its second blood drive of the year. Due to emergency appeals for red blood cells, parishioners helped give “the gift of life” when they donated between 35 and 40 pints of blood to the New York Blood Center. Pictured is Karen Abbondondelo, a registered nurse with Long Island Blood Services, a division of the New York Blood Center, and parishioner Phil Turull. Abbondondelo said that churches and synagogues have been a “great source” for the blood center. To schedule a donation, call 1-800-933-2566 or visit www.nybloodcenter.org.

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