Give a pint, get a pint. That’s been the motto at Hillman Beer every time they’ve hosted a community blood drive with The Blood Connection (TBC) at their brewery in Biltmore Village.
The family biz (owned by brothers Brad + Greig Hillman, and Greig’s wife Brandi Hillman) has been working with TBC for more than a year, hosting a total of 9 blood drives; one every 2-3 months. They say turnout is great because many locals have identified Hillman Beer as their designated place to do their good deed of giving blood – while also grabbing lunch + a free beer. (The Blood Connection gives each donor a Hillman Beer gift card ranging from $10-20 for food, beer or merch. Win-win.)
Each drive averages 25-30 viable donors (with more showing up, but not qualifying to donate). With the average donor giving 1 pint of blood, one drive can generate 30+ pints of blood, which go to help hospital patients at Mission Health + ten other WNC hospital partners.
Brandi Hillman says that hosting a blood drive as a business is simple (and that The Blood Connection is organized + super easy to work with). Her pro-tips, if your org is considering hosting one:
- Set dates in advance.
- Create Facebook events for every date (like Hillman Beer does)
- Post on social media the day before + morning-of to remind folks (example here)
- Put up the flyers TBC provides weeks in advance (Hillman Beer posts them in spots like the bathrooms to catch peoples’ eyes while they’re waiting)
Interested in hosting a drive (or a series of drives, like Hillman Beer)? Click here or on the button below. Ⓟ
