Out of 10 million possible blood donors in Ontario, less than two per cent are giving blood. A local Canadian Blood Services employee says while the Wellington County area is generous and doing a good job in getting out to donate, there are still a bunch of free appointments locally too.

Katie Bea, Community Development Manager of the Guelph area for Canadian Blood Services, says the pandemic brought a “significant” loss of donors, and the recoup still isn't complete.

Bea, who said Guelph has a high frequency of donations, added the number of appointments available continues to be high.

"There are approximately 900 appointments in the Guelph donor centre area in the next four weeks, so we're really asking people to come out and join Canadian Blood Services in helping save lives," Bea said.

She added eligibility criteria are modified often, so there's never a need to rule yourself out. While Guelph's numbers are solid, Bea reiterated, there's room across the county for an increase in support.

"There's simply not enough donors right now who are actively donating to meet the need, the increasing need- especially here in the area. So, Guelph is showing support, but we need more," Bea stated.

Bea reminds residents you can go to blood.ca to learn more.

Listen to the CICW story below: