Bonfils Blood Center Changes Name To Vitalant

By Jeff Gurney

DENVER (CBS4)- Bonfils Blood Center is changing its name to Vitalant.

"It strengthens our mission," says Liz Lambert with the Colorado Vitalant office.

In 2017, Bonfils merged with 127 other blood centers across the country. Lambert says many of them had different names. Behind the scenes, little will change according to Lambert. All the employees are staying.

Vitalant in Colorado will honor the legacy of the Bonfils family and keep the dedication wall inside its Lowry facility.

Vitalant is based in Scottsdale, Arizona. It will operate the eight donation centers in Colorado.

Chairman of the Board of Trustees Dr. Ron Waeckerlin says, "A name change does not change our commitment to the communities we serve or the people who count on us. In fact, our national presence allows us to effectively tap into our network to ensure donations reach the people who need it most."

Vitalant released this statement, "As one of the nation's oldest and largest comprehensive transfusion medicine organizations serving communities across some 40 states, Vitalant's 127 nationwide donation centers and 30,000 mobile blood drives welcome more than 780,000 volunteer blood donors who supply 1.8 million donations per year."

LINK: Vitalant