Pantex received two awards for its life-saving blood donations efforts in 2025
The Coffee Memorial Blood Center mobile donor RV has been a mainstay at Pantex for decades… making it a convenient place to step up, lie down, and literally offer up a part of yourself to help save a stranger’s life.
For the second year in a row, Pantex has been recognized by the Coffee Memorial Blood Center as the top entity for blood donations across the entire High Plains region with 920 units of blood collected in 2025. The city of Dumas came in second, registering 635 units through their united drive efforts.
Pantex Administrative Support Assistant Sandra Lightfoot said, “This is the second year with Coffee Memorial doing awards that Pantex has been recognized as the No. 1 overall within our area for producing blood donations; Pantex was also No.1 in the Business Category that Coffee Memorial recognized.”
The Coffee Memorial Blood Center is an integral part in blood donations across the area and is part of Our Blood Institute (OBI) — the sixth-largest independent blood center in the nation, with 17 donor centers in Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas providing blood for more than 240 hospitals, medical facilities, and air ambulances across all three states. Coffee Memorial provides blood and blood products to the hospitals and medical facilities to all major hospitals in the High Plains region.
“The team at Pantex went above and beyond, hosting over 30 blood drives and collecting 920 units. This isn't just a number on a spreadsheet — it represents over 2,760 lives touched right here in our local communities,” Frausto Austin, senior account manager at Coffee Memorial Blood Center said.
Pantex averages three drives per month, with one at the PAC, JCDC, and Building 12-70 cafeteria parking lots. In the months of April, October, and December Pantex will host four blood drives, and this year the goal is 1,000 units of donated blood.
“If everyone would look at this act of giving just one unit of blood is that they are a hero and in fact saving a life. This simple selfless act gives a gift of hope in more ways than just one unit of blood. I would like to challenge everyone to donate if not every 59 days then at least four times a year. We need to average 62 units a month to meet that mark,” Lightfoot said.