When Brandis Clayton Virgial and Halema Townsend first met through Zeta Phi Beta Sorority in 2023, they quickly bonded over their shared commitment to service. During a private conversation, they discovered something even more meaningful: both were living with sickle cell disease.
“Halema came to me in confidence and told me that she also had sickle cell,” Brandis recalled. “I was just like, ‘Oh my goodness.’ We kind of bonded from there.”
As Juneteenth and World Sickle Cell Day are both observed on June 19, the American Red Cross is recognizing these important occasions by raising awareness about sickle cell disease and the critical need for a safe, diverse and stable blood supply.
People living with sickle cell disease often require regular blood transfusions throughout their lives to manage complications and improve their quality of life. Because individuals who receive frequent transfusions need blood that is more closely matched, donors of the same race or similar ethnic background are often more likely to provide compatible blood.