Kelowna's annual Blood Donation by Sikh Nation takes place Saturday

The annual Blood Donation by Sikh Nation takes place Saturday at the Kelowna Blood Donor clinic.

Kelowna's Sikh community participates in this national campaign every year during November. The campaign commemorates those who have lost their lives while aiming to save the lives of others. 

This year, local MLA Renee Merrfield will be donating blood at the event with the Canadian Blood Services at 10 a.m.

Sikh Nation (Sikh Quom) embraces a vision that all humans deserve a safe and happy life around the world.

Volunteers started the donation event 21 years ago in the Lower Mainland and since then, the annual event has expanded to include places across Canada. Sikh Nation has helped save nearly 150,000 lives in the last two decades through blood donation events. 

In doing so, Sikh Nation has become Canadian Blood Services' biggest Partners for Life (PFL) donor group in B.C. and the Yukon. It is also one of the largest donor groups in Canada. 

By joining the Partners for Life program, Sikh Nation works towards a yearly donation goal while tracking donations from registered members. 

Many Sikh Nation members donate blood on a regular basis, so much so that 60 per cent of their donations happen outside of November. 

“By helping to save lives, we want to commemorate those who lost their lives,” says volunteer with the Sikh Nation Sukhdeep Singh, who has been a part of the group since its inception. 

“The campaign is designed to bring people together by saving the lives of our fellow Canadians,” says Jastej Kaur of Blood Donation by Sikh Nation. “Through this partnership, the Sikh community in Canada has come out in droves and many have gone on to become regular blood donors.”

The annual Blood Donation by Sikh Nation will take place at the Kelowna Blood Donor clinic from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.