FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Blood Center’s First Annual Golf Tournament Promises a Good Time for a Good Cause

JULY 6, 2004, SEATTLE — Fun-loving golfers with a penchant for helping others will converge on the Golf Club at Newcastle for a day of breathtaking city views, competitive play and some of the most memorable golf in the Northwest. Sure to be a fun and entertaining event, it’s also going to support Puget Sound Blood Center and help children with hemophilia, an inherited bleeding disorder that affects thousands. Seattle Seahawks fullback, Mack Strong, will be the tournament’s honorary chairman.

Puget Sound Blood Center and the Bleeding Disorder Foundation of Washington will host the first annual Golf Gets in Your Blood Classic fundraiser, dinner and auction on Friday, July 23 at the Coal Creek Golf Course, the Golf Club’s award-winning course. Warm up begins at 9 a.m., followed by golfer registration at 9:30 a.m. The 18-hole tournament starts at 11 a.m., followed by a 5 p.m. cocktail reception and silent/live auction. Dinner and a live auction start at 6 p.m.

Proceeds from this fundraiser support research at Puget Sound Blood Center and give children with hemophilia and other bleeding conditions the opportunity to attend Camp IV-Y, a week-long summer retreat sponsored by the Bleeding Disorder Foundation.

“Collaborating with the Blood Center on this important fundraising tournament is a natural extension of our goals and mission,” said Reid Morgan, president of the Bleeding Disorder Foundation and a long-time Blood Center patient. “Together, both organizations can work to find a cure for hemophilia and improve the quality of life for those with bleeding disorders.”

The Blood Center’s research, medical and blood and tissue services combined provide hope for thousands of automobile accident and burn victims, people with sickle cell anemia, diabetes, blood and bone cancers, hemophilia and autoimmune disorders. As a first year event, the financial goal for the fundraiser is $70,000, according to a Blood Center executive.

“The Blood Center, like many leading research and medical care institutions, has cultivated a greater emphasis on fundraising to maintain and expand its services,” Mick Larkin, the Blood Center’s
director of development. “While the tournament promises to be both memorable and entertaining, it’s important to remember that proceeds from the Golf Gets in Your Blood Classic will assist thousands in
our community by ensuring the continued success of Blood Center programs.”
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While Puget Sound Blood Center provides blood to 70 hospitals and medical clinics throughout a 14-county region, most are unaware that it conducts internationally recognized research and provides comprehensive medical services to hundreds of patients each year. The Blood Center’s hemophilia program, for example, helps people with hemophilia obtain early, effective treatment and acquire skills that foster independence and minimize the acute and chronic complications of hemophilia. The program is the only of its kind in Washington.

Interested golfers can register now by contacting the Blood Center’s Development office at 206-292-7070 or by visiting www.psbc.org.

Among the local businesses that have contributed items for auction are the Mackay Restaurant Group, (owners of El Gaucho, Waterfront Seafood Grill and Troiani), the Sorento Hotel, The Moyer Foundation, Sephora, Consolidated Restaurants, Tiffany & Co. and Seattle Opera.

About the Bleeding Disorder Foundation of Washington
The Bleeding Disorder Foundation of Washington is a volunteer, non-profit service organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of families affected by bleeding disorders and complications of those disorders, such as HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis. Our mission is to provide a conduit for education and information, advocacy for excellent medical care, and support for affected individuals and their families via peer outreach programs and special events.

About Puget Sound Blood Center
Celebrating 60 years in the community, the Blood Center is internationally recognized for groundbreaking research in transfusion and transplantation medicine. The nonprofit Blood Center is the resource for patients in Western Washington who need blood, tissue and specialized laboratory services. Founded in 1944, the Blood Center has a long and unique tradition of blending community volunteerism, medical science and research to improve patients’ lives. The organization directly affects the lives of over a half million patients annually in more than 70 hospitals and clinics in 14 counties of Washington State and provides tissue and transplantation support to 185 hospitals across the Northwest.

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