HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The Blood Bank of Hawaii (BBH) kicked off the season of giving with its annual holiday blood drive.

The seventh Annual Holiday Blood Drive took place at Waikele Shopping Center Saturday.

The blood bank is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except for three days of the year: Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s, and is urging people to donate.

“The need for blood during the holidays is even greater,” said BBH president Kim-Anh Nguyen. “In fact, this last year, our hospital patients needed 2% more red cells and 3% more than we expected, and so our shelves are going to be pretty bare.”

Nguyen added that although many think donations go up during the holidays, it’s actually the opposite.

“Everybody’s rushing around during the holidays, shopping, but not

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