Blood drive being organized in memory of Betty Fowler

The Barnsdall Chamber of Commerce is rallying members and friends to help organize and conduct a blood drive June 30 for the American Red Cross in memory of the late Betty Fowler.

Fowler, who died May 16, 2019, at the age of 75, was known for her wide-ranging civic involvement in Barnsdall. She was especially well-known, however, for her work as a blood drive coordinator for the Red Cross. In 1994, she received the President’s Award from Elizabeth Dole, who was the Red Cross president at the time.

Claud Rosendale, president of the Barnsdall Chamber, in a May 17 email message to potential supporters of the June 30 blood drive, invoked the memory of Fowler’s dedicated service to the Red Cross.

“Most of you are probably aware that Betty coordinated the blood drives in Barnsdall for 49 years,” Rosendale said in his message seeking volunteers. “In honor of her we are working with the American Red Cross to conduct a ‘Betty Fowler Memorial Blood Drive’ on Tuesday, June 30. We would like a volunteer committee of at least 7 members that will each commit to getting at least five (5) individuals to volunteer to donate blood in Betty’s honor. Five commitments from each of the seven volunteers would be a great start but if more want to volunteer, it would be even better.”

Lisa Duke, a territory blood drive manager for the Red Cross, in a May 4 message to Rosendale and the Barnsdall Chamber, emphasized how important the Betty Fowler Memorial Blood Drive would be to the Red Cross right now.

“We are in desperate need for blood drives,” Duke wrote. “High schools and universities comprise 25% of all blood donations and due to COVID concerns shutting them down we are in a scary position. Our churches have stepped up to the plate and allowed us to move a small fraction of them to their facilities.”

Duke also conveyed to Rosendale and the Barnsdall Chamber that the Red Cross is strictly abiding by federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines regarding COVID-19, to prevent the spread of the respiratory illness.

The June 30 blood drive is to be held at the Assembly of God Church in Barnsdall. For more information, or to volunteer, contact Rosendale at crosendale@windstream.net or 918-847-2202. Duke can be contacted at lisa.duke@redcross.org and 918-370-3655 or 918-232-4576.