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© St. Petersburg Times, published July 19, 2002
Florida Blood Services is a nonprofit organization serving Pinellas, Hillsborough and Pasco counties.
It is the largest blood services center for the Tampa Bay area, providing blood to 34 hospitals, including Bayfront Medical Center and Tampa General Hospital and dozens of other facilities such as surgery centers.
The organization has a $42-million annual budget and 500 paid employees.
Florida Blood Services was formed in 1992, combining Southwest Florida Blood Bank, Hunter Blood Bank and Community Blood Bank, all nonprofit organizations serving the Tampa Bay area.
It moved to its headquarters to Ninth Street N in St. Petersburg three years ago, but has 11 offices and blood centers in the area.
The organization is overseen by a 25-member board of directors comprised of community and business leaders, who serve three-year terms.
The blood bank collects about 200,000 pints of blood a year from 100,000 donors.
Florida Blood Services needs about 600 pints a day to keep up with demands in the Tampa Bay area.