DAYTON – Make Mother’s Day weekend a celebration of giving life by donating blood in a time of low supply.

Register to donate Friday or Saturday, May 10-11 at the Solvita Blood Center, 349 S. Main St., and receive a free Mother’s Day carnation and a Kroger $10 gift card.

Schedule an appointment to donate with Solvita (formerly Community Blood Center) on the Donor Time app, by calling 937-461-3220, or at www.donortime.com.

Everyone who registers to donate now through June 29 will receive the Solvita slogan T-shirt. Register to donate April 29-June 1 to be automatically entered in a drawing to win a pair of Bengals vs. Steelers tickets.

Solvita is in low supply of type O positive and negative and type B negative blood. Type O is the universal blood type and is in constant demand for emergency usage. Type B is less common in the population so after high usage fewer donors are available to replenish supply.

The approaching Memorial Day holiday weekend will launch the summer vacation season, an always difficult time to register the 350 donors needed every day to supply area hospitals.

You can save time while helping save lives by using “DonorXPress” to complete the donor questionnaire before arriving at a blood drive. Find DonorXPress on the Donor Time App or at www.solvita.org/donorxpress.