By Ethan Nahté
It’s that time of the year for the annual Boots & Badges Community Blood Drive, but this year will be different than years past.
Cheryl Murphy, volunteer secretary for Humane Society of the Ouachitas (HSO) said, “Our local Polk County, Arkansas, no-kill, nonprofit animal shelter… has been nominated to participate in a fantastic opportunity to raise funds through a company called Donable.
“This opportunity was made possible by Mena Fire Chief Steve Egger, Polk County Sheriff Scott Sawyer, and Mena Police Chief Tommy Stueart in honor of his daughter, the late Polk County Sheriff Deputy Sonja Stueart, whose love of animals was evident to those who knew and loved her.
Sawyer announced on his Facebook page, “…We’ve change things up this year. Instead of a competition between the LEOs and the Waterboys, we are uniting to do a Memorial Blood drive to honor Polk County Deputy Sonja Stueart. For every blood donation made (if you sign up through the app) a $15 donation will be made to the Ouachita Humane Society in Sonja’s name.”
This endeavor is for those who donate blood regularly or those who would like to give blood through Arkansas/Oklahoma Blood Institute (ABI/OBI). For every blood donor who gives blood by signing up at the link https://donableapp.com/register/931FB9DF-8414-EF11-96F5-0022484A1D99 or scanning the QR code, HSO will receive $15 per each donor. The donor does not pay the $15.
Healthy donors must be a minimum age of 18. When you access the link, select June 20 or June 21 for your giving date and schedule your donation time. The Boots & Badges Community Blood Drive will be held in the Fellowship Hall at the First Baptist Church in Mena and operates between noon to 6 p.m. both days.
Donors will receive a Boots & Badges T-shirt and choice of one of the following admission tickets: Magic Springs Theme and Waterpark in Hot Springs, Six Flags Frontier City in Oklahoma City, or Six Flags Hurricane Harbor in Oklahoma City while supplies last. A photo ID is required.
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