The Catskill Chronicle

Haitian First Lady Elisabeth Debrosse Delatour, President Rene Preval and Barth Green, M.D., professor and chairman of the Miller School’s Department of Neurological Surgery,and Co-Founder with Project Medishare discuss the earthquake relief efforts in Port-au-Prince on Wednesday. Having a staff presence in Haiti before the earthquake, Project Medishare was the first group on the ground with U.S. doctors. (Photo courtesy Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

NEW WINDSOR – In an effort to help in the relief efforts following the Jan. 12th earthquake in Haiti, Community Blood Services is collecting medical supplies at its donor centers in New York and New Jersey to send to the earthquake-ravaged country.

Community Blood Services, whose has its headquarters in Oradell, New Jersey but operates donor centers in New Windsor and Warwick in New York, is working with Project Medishare for Haiti, Inc. to provide them with the much-needed medical supplies. Project Medishare is a non-profit organization dedicated to sharing its human and technical resources with its Haitian partners in the quest to achieve quality healthcare and development services for all.

Supplies are being collected through January 31st. Community Blood Services, a non-profit organization that supplies blood and blood products collected from volunteer donors to more than 30 hospitals in New Jersey and New York, will send the items to Project Medishare, who will get the supplies to Haiti. For more information, call toll free 1-866-228-1500.

“As a community blood center who has many dedicated volunteer donors and contacts with the health community, we felt it was important to come together to help the people of this devastated nation,” said Vernon Reed, vice president of development at Community Blood Services.

“Haiti needs our help quickly,” he added, explaining the quick turnaround for collecting the supplies. “It’s really important to get these supplies to those who need them as quickly as possible.”

Supplies needed include:

• Ace bandages
• Alcohol swabs
• Aspirin
• Band aides (all sizes)
• Bleach
• Green soap
• Hand sanitizer
• Hydrogen peroxide
• Ibuprofen
• Iodine
• Neosporin
• Sterile gauze (2×2; 2×4; and non-sterile rolls)
• Surgical sponges
• Tape (surgical and paper)
• Tums
• Tylenol

Supplies can be dropped off at the following locations:

New Windsor Donor Center (NY), 575 Hudson Valley Ave., Suite 206, Tuesday, 1 to 5 p.m.; Wednesday, 4 to 6:30 p.m.; or Saturday, 8 a.m. to noon.

Warwick Donor Center (NY), 20 Grand St. near the Mount Alverno Center, on Mondays and on Thursday, Jan. 21, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. or Sunday, Jan. 24, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Paramus Donor Center (NJ), 970 Linwood Ave. West, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., or Saturday or Sunday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Lincoln Park Donor Center (NJ). 63 Beaverbrook Road, Suite 304, Tuesday or Wednesday, 1 to 6:30 p.m. or Saturday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.