Two Certified Wildlife Habitats Created in WeHo BY ANA FIGUEROA
Two WeHo Parks are now Certified Wildlife Habitats. The City of West Hollywood has created two new Certified Wildlife Habitats through the Garden for Wildlife program of the
National Wildlife Federation (NWF). The habitats are located at Formosa Park, 1140 N. Formosa Avenue, and Havenhurst Park,
Blood Donations Urgently Needed BY ANA FIGUEROA
1351 Havenhurst Drive. The Garden for Wildlife program recognizes local efforts to create and sustain gardens that serve as havens for local birds, butterflies, and other wildlife. The goal of Certified Wildlife Habitats is to help support the health and reproduction of local mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates including insect populations such as bees, which are important pollinators in the ecosystem. “This is one of my favorite initiatives and I'm proud that our City has created two new Certified Wildlife Habitats through the Garden for Wildlife program of the National Wildlife Federation,” said City of West Hollywood Mayor Pro Tempore Lauren Meister. “Not only will this help the City of West Hollywood meet its goals to become healthier, greener, and more wildlife-friendly. Every habitat garden is a step toward replenishing resources for wildlife, such as bees, butterflies, and birds. Climate change is real, and each thing we do to help our urban wildlife helps in the fight against climate change.” “Supporting and welcoming back native
plants and animals to our City is part of our larger sustainability efforts,” said City of West Hollywood Councilmember John D’Amico. “And we encourage everyone with a garden of any size to certify their garden as a Community Wildlife Habitat with NWF.” Backyards, urban gardens, container gardens, school grounds, businesses, places of worship, campuses, parks, farms, zoos, and community landscapes can all be recognized as Certified Wildlife Habitats through NWF. For nearly half a century, the NWF has engaged in wildlife conservation and education across the country. It has also recognized more than 227,000 Certified Wildlife Habitats which cover more than 2.5 million acres. For more information about participating in NWF’s Certified Wildlife Habitats Program, please visit www.nwf.org/garden-for-wildlife. For more information about the City of West Hollywood’s certification of Formosa Park and Havenhurst Park, including details about plant species and elements that support local habitats, visit www.weho. org/habitat.
Blood supplies are critically low in the Southland. Los Angeles area hospitals are experiencing shortages of blood products this month. According to Armando Romero, associate director of Blood Donor Services at CedarsSinai, the supply has remained consistently low throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The public is urged to make every possible effort to donate blood when possible. "Community blood drives in places like high schools, colleges and churches are traditionally our biggest source for blood donations," Romero said. "With these venues closed and no longer hosting events like blood drives, we're struggling to keep up with demand." Romero said that when the hospital can't supply the necessary blood from its own blood collection activities, it turns to outside sources like the American Red Cross. But increased demand for blood products from hospitals throughout the country has caused even those sources to run low on supply. "What ends up happening is that we have to piece together blood deliveries from different sources," Romero said. "If, for example, we need 50 units of Type O blood, one source might be able to give us 20, another might be able to send us 25. We JANUARY 22, 2021
assess the situation daily to make sure we have enough to keep up with the next few days' demands." Romero noted that with supplies so low, donations will likely be put to use within a short time. As a result, more patients will be able to safely undergo a surgery they need or receive lifesaving medical treatment. Cedars-Sinai is taking precautions to keep donors safe and prevent the spread of the coronavirus, noted Romero. Appointments are spaced out so that there are fewer donors in the donation center at any given time, and donation beds are set up to create physical distancing. Donors must wear masks at all times when donating blood and are prescreened for COVID-19 symptoms before entering the donation center. And there's a bonus: Each donor at Cedars-Sinai receives a free COVID-19 antibody test with their donation. This test can determine whether the donor has ever been exposed to the virus, although it does not determine immunity. Appointments for donating blood at Cedars-Sinai can be made online at: https://www.donatebloodcedars.org/index. cfm?group=op&es=true&bbsID=3.
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