On November 24th, 2022 LifeServe Blood Center enters their 75th anniversary year. LifeServe Blood Center’s inception dates to 1947, when four Des Moines area hospitals formed the Polk County Blood Donor Service with Des Moines grocer and blood donor recruitment philanthropist, Ike Smalls, as director.
LifeServe Blood Center, ranked as one of the top 15 blood centers in the country, provides blood products to 157 hospitals primarily in Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. From a small one-man operation to a tri-state company that reached a lifesaving impact of 161,588 individuals in need in 2021, LifeServe has experienced great change in their organization over the past 75 years. Long term Des Moines area residents may recognize Community Blood Bank of Iowa, The Blood Center of Central Iowa, and The Blood Center of Iowa, as the names held by the organization prior to the 2010 merger with Siouxland Community Blood Bank to form LifeServe Blood Center.
“I can’t image that 75 years ago, when the Des Moines Hospital Council was taking action in 1947 to establish this organization, that they could imagine what the organization would become today” reflected Stacy Sime, LifeServe President and CEO.
LifeServe’s expansion continues during the 75th year with the openings of new facilities in Mitchell and Aberdeen, South Dakota, and ongoing construction on the new headquarter facility in Johnston, Iowa.
LifeServe Blood Center maintains a mission of saving lives in partnership with the communities they serve, ensuring that a blood donation in your community goes to a patient in need at the local hospital. To meet the needs of the communities they are partnered with, LifeServe needs 200,000 community members to donate each year. While many aspects of blood collection have changed over the last 75 years, LifeServe’s commitment to saving local lives remains cornerstone to all efforts of the organization.
LifeServe invites community members to roll up their sleeves and donate blood this year, in celebration of 75 years saving local lives. Sime shares, “Then as it is now, the work that we do is dependent on you”. Throughout the course of their 75th anniversary year, LifeServe plans to celebrate all the individuals, organizations, and communities that have contributed to the lifesaving mission. Information about upcoming events, promotions, and blood drives can be found at www.lifeservebloodcenter.org.
