Latter-day Saints in Ghana Donate Blood to Local Hospital

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Sekondi-Takoradi, Ghana, spent Republic Day (July 1st) donating blood to the Effia Nkwanta Regional hospital blood bank.

Church leaders planned this humanitarian service project to take place at the Takoradi Stake Center (a stake is a group of Latter-day Saints congregations, similar to a diocese) to allow more Church members to participate. More than 60 units of safe blood were donated to the blood bank during the event. 

The blood donation project was the second to be organized by the Church this year. The first one took place on New Year’s Day.

For several years Latter-day Saints in the Takoradi Stake have been donating blood to the Effia Nkwanta Regional Hospital blood bank twice a year, in an effort to help replenish the stock of blood at the bank and save lives.

Journalists who covered the event said they were impressed with the frequency of blood donation by the Church members. Mr. Richard Osei, chairman of the stake public affairs council, told journalists that the blood-donation exercise was one of many humanitarian service projects the Church offers to the community.

One journalist remarked, “If all the churches in the city emulate your example, the blood bank will never run out of supply. You are really saving lives.”

Mr. Emil Anornu, the hospital’s deputy chief blood donation organizer, expressed his heartfelt appreciation and appealed to other churches and organizations to follow the good example of the Latter-day Saints.

By the end of the service project, the supply of plastic blood storage bags was depleted because donor participation exceeded expectations. Mr. Anornu assured donors that they could always visit the blood bank at the hospital and donate.