A common question we get at SBC is “What’s the difference between donating at SBC and another blood center in the area?” And while we can’t provide details as to the inner workings of other blood centers, we can tell...
Roughly three weeks before any social distancing regulations were instituted in the Bay Area, back when local COVID-19 cases were few and seemingly contained, Kendra Nash went on a long-anticipated ski trip with 11 of her close friends. What was...
At just 19 years old, Julie Cruzal’s world was shaken when, for the first time that she could remember, it was her own hero — her mom — who needed saving. On that fateful day, Julie witnessed the terrifying consequences...
John Tallarida has been an active and passionate blood donor for most of his adult life. When John was only about nine years old, his father was hit by a tractor rig in a devastating accident, after which the doctors...
On September 17, SBC updated and, in some cases, reduced deferral periods for a number of risk factors, including travel to malaria-risk regions, tattoos, and risk of HIV (which includes guidance around men who have sex with men). These changes,...
As a pilot, Robert Jendrey is always on the go. And while typically having the ability to travel around the world is considered a great luxury, when the COVID-19 pandemic was in its infancy and suspicion of global transmission was...
Beliefs around blood have inspired many idioms and words for centuries in the English language. However, in some cases, what is now thought of as no more than a descriptive figure of speech actually originated from an outdated anatomical understanding...
In honor of this week’s Blood in Pop Culture challenge, “blood x theater,” SBC sat down with classically trained actor and Bay Area native Robert Sicular to ask about his experience with blood and acting. Since the age of three,...
As first-time parents, Kylie De La O-Menard and her husband Guillaume Menard knew that there were many challenges they would have to work through as part of learning to care for a new baby — the exhaustion, the baby’s crying,...
In early March, COVID-19, while present in San Mateo County, was still reported to be a low health risk to the general public. In fact, the first case of unknown origin in the county had just been identified March 2....