Give More to Win More: Community Blood Center of the Ozarks’ 56-Day Challenge Returns – Register by February 28 to Participate

(Joplin, MO) – Start the new year by making a lifesaving commitment. Community Blood Center of the Ozarks (CBCO) invites you to take the 56-Day Challenge in 2026. Give blood, save lives, repeat and you could win up to $56,000 in Visa gift cards, sponsored by Adam Swenka with Flat Branch Home Loans and The Giving Branch.

How to participate:

• Register online by February 28. You can register here. You must register by February 28, 2026, to be eligible for drawings/prizes. After February 28, only first-time donors can join the challenge.
• Give blood anytime in 2026! You do not have to donate by February 28 — just register by then to lock in your chance to win.
• The more you give, the more money you can win! Your number of donations equals the number of entries and the number of $1,000 Visa gift cards you could win.

“This challenge is all about encouraging donors to give more frequently,” said Michelle Teter, CBCO Media Relations Representative. “The average donor gives less than twice a year when they can safely give whole blood six times a year. If everyone who donates gave just one extra time, that could help prevent local blood shortages.” Teter shared how easy it is for all donors to turn their good deeds into the chance to win big. “All you have to do is register by Feb. 28 to say, “Challenge accepted.” Your chance to win starts with your first donation in 2026. Give blood, save lives, then repeat to increase your odds.

For sponsor Adam Swenka of Flat Branch Home Loans, the mission is personal. His daughter, Joselina, needed lifesaving blood transfusions as a newborn. Today, she’s thriving thanks to donors who gave selflessly. “You never know when someone you love will need blood,” Swenka said. “This challenge is about making sure the blood is there for other patients like Joselina. What if someone hadn’t decided to take an hour out of their day to selflessly give the gift of life? Our goal is to make the decision to give blood an easy one and then give our generous donors some incentive to do it again and again.”

Because of generous sponsors like Adam Swenka and The Giving Branch, a philanthropic organization funded by the Flat Branch Mortgage, Inc. employees providing financial support to individuals and organizations in the communities they serve, CBCO was able to provide over $25,000 in Visa gift cards to the 2025 56-Day Challenge winners.

Patients at more than 40 hospitals rely on CBCO donors for all their blood needs. Join the challenge and make a lifesaving impact in your community.

Donors in January and February will also receive a crewneck sweatshirt while supplies last.

To help avoid wait times, appointments are strongly encouraged. For more information or to schedule an appointment at a donor center or mobile blood drive near you, click here or call 417.227.5006.

About Community Blood Center of the Ozarks:

Community Blood Center of the Ozarks is the exclusive provider of blood, plasma, and platelets to patients at 44 area Ozark hospitals in southwest Missouri, northwest Arkansas, and southeast Kansas. More than 50,000 donations of blood are required each year to meet the local transfusion needs of our friends and neighbors.

Reference: 

Michelle Teter, Media Relations Representative
Community Blood Center of the Ozarks
417.227.5367