Fans can receive free admission to this weekend’s Louisville City FC home game by signing up to donate blood on site.
LouCity is partnering with Kentucky Blood Center, which will have its “Bloodmobile” at Lynn Family Stadium from 4:30-7:30 p.m. Saturday. Those who show up to the box office with proof of an appointment — they can be booked in advance at this link — will receive one complimentary ticket to LouCity’s 7 p.m. game against Indy Eleven.
Donors will also be given a complimentary Kentucky Blood Center T-shirt while supplies last.
Saturday’s blood drive aims to help those like 22-year-old Cade Tackett, a former Scott County High School football player who planned on a career in the U.S. Army. But multiple symptoms — loss of weight, motor skills and hearing — led to a life-altering diagnosis.
Paraneoplastic neurological syndrome is a rare immune-mediated effect of cancer where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks healthy nerve tissues while trying to fight cancerous cells.
Surgery removed Cade’s cancerous tumor. But he continues to require intravenous immunoglobulin infusions, a concentrated dose of antibodies extracted from the plasma of healthy donors. In Cade’s case, the good antibodies he receives counteract the bad antibodies and calm his immune system. One treatment alone is derived from thousands of donors, and Cade receives consistent infusions. The treatments are reducing the inflammation of his brain and, slowly but surely, returning some of his functions.
“I don’t know that we would see the progress that we have without blood donors,” said Shellie Tackett, Cade’s father. “To the outside world, it doesn’t look like he’s made progress, but for us living it every single day, especially him, if I had to quantify it, it would be a 90% improvement.”
Donations with Kentucky Blood Center stay local to support patients at more than 70 Kentucky hospitals. A whole blood donation takes just 45 minutes from registration to refreshment.
Blood donors must be at least 17 years old (16 with parental consent), weigh at least 110 pounds, be in good general health, show a photo I.D. and meet additional requirements. Sixteen-year-old donors must have a signed parental permission slip, which can be found at kybloodcenter.org.
Appointments are preferred but walk-ins are welcome.
About Kentucky Blood Center
KBC, the largest independent, full-service, nonprofit blood center in Kentucky, has been saving local lives since 1968. Licensed by the FDA, KBC’s sole purpose is to collect, process and distribute blood for patients in Kentucky. KBC provides services in 90 Kentucky counties and has donor centers in Lexington, Louisville, Frankfort, Pikeville, Somerset and the Tri-County area (Corbin).
