[From left to right] East Penn Manufacturing employees Jen Birch, senior certified medical assistant and blood drive coordinator, and Laurie Heagy, director of medical services, attend the ceremony to receive East Penn’s ABC award.
East Penn Manufacturing named Corporation of the Year by America’s Blood Centers (ABC)
For over four decades, employees and friends of East Penn Manufacturing have been voluntarily making one the most extraordinary contributions possible: donating blood. Now, that quiet generosity of company blood drives has earned East Penn the ABC (America’s Blood Centers) Corporation of the Year award.
Based in Berks County, Pennsylvania, family-owned East Penn operates the largest single-site, lead battery manufacturing facility in the world. The BCI-member company is a leading manufacturer of high-quality lead batteries and accessories for telecommunications, UPS, data center, motive power, renewable energy, and transportation markets.
East Penn is also a cornerstone of a regional blood center.
Playing a pivotal role in “saving countless lives”
Miller-Keystone Blood Center (MKBC) in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, nominated East Penn for ABC’s award by submitting a letter detailing the company’s partnership and profound impact in MKBC’s ability to meet its blood supply needs.
Notably, East Penn’s consistency and commitment ranks them as MKBC’s top corporate partner in terms of blood drives and donated blood products. East Penn also provides financial support, such as sponsoring MKBC events, like the annual Appreciation Series that recognizes volunteer blood donors throughout the region.
“Their [East Penn’s] dedication to supporting a safe and ready blood supply is rare and speaks volumes about East Penn’s commitment to the blood donation community,” wrote MKBC in the award application. “Their efforts have directly contributed to saving countless lives.”
In addition, the Breidegam Family Foundation, which is closely connected to East Penn’s leadership, recently made one of the largest gifts MKBC has received by sponsoring a new bloodmobile. This ensures the region has the necessary infrastructure to facilitate more donation opportunities long into the future.
By the numbers: Consistently showing up for good
Here are some impressive highlights of East Penn’s partnership with MKBC:
- Since 1983, hosting over 500 on-site blood drives (one per month).
- Since 2010, collecting nearly 14,000 blood products from more than 12,400 donation procedures.
- In 2016, East Penn surpassed the significant milestone of 1,000 units collected in a single year.
- As part of new-employee orientation (over 10,000 employees), the company highlights blood drive opportunities and actively promotes donation events.
- Going the extra mile by celebrating employee participation with free lunch at blood drives.
Why a commitment to this issue? It’s personal.
A true leader in East Penn’s blood drive efforts is Dan Breidegam, the Founder’s son and retired chairman of East Penn Manufacturing. He has personally championed blood donation.
Breidegam is a committed whole blood donor at the 10-plus gallon level and frequently donates alongside his employees. He started donating blood through a local organization and realized he could make an even bigger difference by partnering with MKBC directly on site at East Penn. He has ingrained blood donation and community service in the East Penn company culture.
Employees know first-hand the impact donating blood can make on others’ lives. For example, a recent monthly blood drive beat the company’s unit goal with another 56 units of blood. One of those came from Dave, who has given blood for 12 years.
Dave realized the impact of blood donations when one of his friends needed a blood transfusion to survive a serious motorcycle accident.
“If not for those people, he wouldn’t have survived that day,” said Dave, who has been with East Penn for 34 years and currently works as a material handler at the company’s Alburtis warehouse. “If you can give back, why not do it?”
A partnership that will continue to flow
Jennifer Birch is East Penn’s senior medical assistant and blood drive coordinator. She shared her reaction to accepting the ABR award.
“We are lucky to have so many generous employees who are willing to donate. It was truly an honor to accept the award on behalf of all the dedicated donors,” Birch said. “We look forward to continuing our longstanding partnership with Miller-Keystone.”
Battery Council International thanks East Penn for being a cornerstone of local, life-saving blood donation efforts.
