We just didn’t bleed enough.

Despite a strong performance in the second half of the Interior Drive for Life Blood Donor Challenge, Kelowna finished second in the friendly competition for a second straight year.

“Despite losing the overall competition, Kelowna donors should be very proud of themselves,” says Tammie Watson, community development coordinator for Kelowna and the Southern Interior. “Not only did we manage to pull ourselves from a low score of 94 per cent in Week 4 to a total score of 105 per cent, we also achieved the highest single week score of the competition. We really made Prince George work hard for its win!”

She says Kelowna collected a total of 1,959 units of blood over the past 10 weeks, which resulted in an extra 90 units of blood for hospital patients in need.

“In the end, the community achieved 104.8 per cent of its 10-week goal. Unfortunately, this high score was not enough to beat Prince George, which collected 108.3 per cent of its 10-week goal, bringing in an extra 119 units of blood. Win or lose, our communities have both made a phenomenal impact.”

As partners of the losing team, the Kelowna Rockets will be making another visit to the Kelowna blood donor clinic this month, this time to help out in the refreshment area of the blood donor clinic.

The Kelowna clinic is located at 103-1865 Dilworth Drive and is open:

• Every Tuesday from noon to 6:45 p.m.
  
• Every Wednesday from noon to 6:45 p.m.
  
• Every fourth Saturday from 9:30 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. (upcoming Saturday clinics are on Dec. 27 and Jan. 24)