LifeStream Blood Bank is proud to announce it has been selected as a 2022 California Nonprofit of the Year by California Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes.
LifeStream is one of more than 100 nonprofits that was honored by their state senators and assemblymembers for their outstanding contributions to the communities they serve.
“We are honored to be among the wonderful nonprofits across California working to better our communities,” said Dr. Rick Axelrod, LifeStream’s president, CEO and medical director. “It is through the support of legislators like Assemblymember Reyes, who care about the health of their community, that enables nonprofits like LifeStream to bring hope and lifesaving services to people in need.”
LifeStream is a nonprofit blood bank that provides blood products and services to more than 80 Southern California hospitals in six counties. To fulfill patient need, LifeStream must collect 500 blood donations daily. To make this mission a reality, LifeStream has fixed-site donor centers in San Bernardino, Riverside, Ontario, Victorville, Murrieta, La Quinta, Rancho Mirage, Placentia and Hemet, where generous, volunteer blood donors can give the gift of life. LifeStream also conducts about 1,700 mobile blood drives annually throughout its service area at schools, churches, businesses, government offices, hospitals and service clubs.
“Nonprofit organizations play such a critical role in our communities, and the last two years of the pandemic have only served to highlight that,” noted Jan Masaoka, CEO of the California Association of Nonprofits (CalNonprofits), which serves as a partner for this awards program. “California Nonprofit of the Year gives elected officials the opportunity to shine a light on the important work nonprofits are doing in their districts and for everyone to appreciate the collective impact of nonprofits in our communities.”
California Nonprofits Day is now in its seventh year. Each year legislators from across California choose a Nonprofit of the Year in their district.
Honorees and legislators are invited by CalNonprofits, Chair of the Senate Select Committee on the Nonprofit Sector Senator Monique Limón (Santa Barbara), and Chair of the Assembly Select Committee on the Nonprofit Sector Assemblymember Luz Rivas to a celebratory luncheon on California Nonprofits Day – June 8, 2022.
According to “Causes Count,” a 2019 report commissioned by CalNonprofits, the nonprofit sector is the 4th largest industry in the state, employing more than 1.2 million people. Each year, California nonprofits generate more than $273 billion in revenue and bring in $40 billion in revenue from outside of California. The unpaid labor contributed by volunteers at nonprofits is equivalent to 330,000 full-time jobs every year.