Editor, Gazette-Journal:

The hustle and bustle of the holiday season is here.

Everyone is searching for that perfect gift. Is it at the half-off sale across town? Or maybe at the store that opens at 5 a.m.? How about that place that offers a free gift with purchase? Sometimes finding the perfect gift seems like an impossible task.

But when you give from the heart, the answer is simple. The Perfect Gift—a lifesaving blood donation—costs nothing but an hour of your time. By donating blood with the American Red Cross, you give a hospital patient in need the most precious gift of all—life.

Can a cashmere sweater do that? How about a bottle of cologne? Not even a brand new flat-screen television can do it. But a blood donation can. Just one donation can save up to three lives. Now, that’s what I call savings!

So, as you flip through circulars and scan retail websites, take a moment to log onto redcrossblood.org or call 1-800-RED-CROSS (1-800-733-2767) and make an appointment to give blood.

Your blood donation this holiday season is the perfect gift … the gift that saves the day. Give life. Your heart, your wallet and countless hospital patients across the country will thank you.

Jack Hamilton

Board chairman, American Red Cross

Mid-Atlantic Blood Services Region

Norfolk, Va.