Community
WestCare Texas Hosts COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Drive
“WestCare Texas Hosts COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma (CCP) Drive to Fill Critically Low Supply”
WestCare Texas has partnered with the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center to bring blood and plasma donation busses out to the community in a life-saving plea for community members, who have recovered from COVID-19, to donate convalescent plasma.
The blood supply in South Texas has reached critically low levels, declining to around half of what is needed to adequately serve patients throughout the region. The shortfall comes at a time when collections normally are rising, the start of the new school year. But because of the coronavirus pandemic, universities are not hosting blood drives.
The South Texas Blood & Tissue Center is the only facility in our community that directly helps critically ill COVID-19 patients in local hospitals, by collecting plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients, per U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements, to be used as a treatment. Currently, plasma is being flown in from New Jersey and New York, because it is in short supply locally. “Sometimes the patient doesn’t have any treatment available to them for days” as the hospital awaits delivery of convalescent plasma, according to a UT Health San Antonio physician.
Identifying CCP donors often reaches beyond the existing donor base. we need to get a particular population, which is people who have recovered from the virus. According to data from the CDC, we do know that certain populations—African-Americans, Hispanic Americans, and the elderly, to name a few—are bearing the brunt of COVID-19 infections and deaths. WestCare understands that COVID-19 has not impacted all communities equally and wants to ensure equity in access to affordable, safe, and effective treatments for COVID-19. “We really want to help the people who have been hurt the most by this disease,” said Beverly Watts Davis, Vice President West Care Texas. “It isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s also the most effective way to protect those whose lives are most at risk and to treat those who develop disease.”
The South Texas blood and Tissue Center has seen a OBI needs its donors to help save patient lives in the here and now.
A single plasma donation with OBI can provide plasma to up to four COVID-19 patients, in a process that takes about an hour and a half. it should be stocked. On the average, one donor can provide 3 – 4 doses, which can help treat 3 – 4 people. up in preparing for the second wave if it will come unless a specific drug or a vaccine will be available.
Art
Downtown SA Lights Up for the Holidays
Downtown San Antonio will sparkle this holiday season with an array of lights and holiday events.
Set against the backdrop of one of the city’s most historic and charming walkways, five blocks of Houston Street will buzz with twinkling lights, decorations, entertainers, and vendors from Nov. 24 and runs through January 2.
Additionally, on Nov. 24, kick off the holiday festivities with the Annual H-E-B Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at Travis Park. Festivities begin at 4 p.m. and include live entertainment, food trucks, letters to Santa, giveaways, holiday crafts, a special visit from Santa, and a movie screening of “The Grinch.” The tree-lighting ceremony begins at 6 p.m., followed by the movie at 7 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.
Get front-row seats to the 42nd Annual Ford Holiday River Parade, which offers a spectacular one-hour parade along the San Antonio River Walk starting at 6 pm at the Tobin Center. This year’s theme, “Holiday Stories,” will kick off the San Antonio tradition. Always held the day after Thanksgiving, the parade and river lighting ceremony will feature 28 illuminated floats and over 100,000 lights (2,250 strands) illuminating the River Walk. The lights turn on from sundown to sunrise every day until the weekend following New Year’s Day. Seating ranges from $15 to $40. It is broadcast live at 7 p.m. at the Arneson River Theatre.
The Rotary Ice Rink, presented by Valero, will also return this fall at Travis Park in downtown San Antonio. Since 2019, nearly 200,000 people have enjoyed the rink and surrounding festivities. For more information, including hours of operation, pricing, and specials, visit (rotaryicerink.com).
For more events, go to (VisitSanAntonio.com).
Black Life Texas
Carver Annual Fundraiser Dec. 2
The Carver Development Board presents the Cavalcade of the Stars on Saturday, Dec. 2, at the Henry B. Gonzalez Center.
This annual fundraiser benefits the Carver’s School for Visual & Performing Arts’ Artist Residency/Master Class Program, summer camps, Youth Matinee Series, and supports the education programs of the Carver Community Cultural Center. The title fundraiser is Valero.
The night will start with a reception and silent auction at 5:30 pm. Dinner is served at 6:30 pm, and the show begins at 8 pm featuring Kiland Kyham, also known as Mr. Houston. Kyham is a gifted and powerful author, singer, and songwriter. He has performed and produced with such music legends as Al Green, Stevie Wonder, Johnathon Butler, and Smokey Robinson. He has written over 400 song jingles and has produced numerous projects.
For over 75 years, The Carver Community Cultural Center (“The Carver”) has served as the San Antonio Eastside’s foremost gathering place of cultural exchange and performance arts. It was originally erected in 1918 as a community center for African-Americans. By the 1930s, the building was repurposed as the Colored Library and renamed the Carver Library and Auditorium in honor of Dr. George Washington Carver. From the 1940s through the Civil Rights Era, prominent African-American entertainers such as Ella Fitzgerald, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Louis Armstrong played at the Carver.
Individual tickets for the Cavalcade of the Stars are $250 or $2,500 per table. For more information, visit (TheCarver.org).
Black Life Texas
Free Native American Festival at the Briscoe
Highlighting the continued vibrancy and artistic traditions of Native American communities – and the local tribes who helped shape San Antonio – the Briscoe Western Art Museum invites everyone to enjoy its annual Yanaguana Indian Arts Festival on Saturday, Nov. 11, from 10 am to 4 pm.
The event is free and includes admission to the Briscoe, making it a perfect way to celebrate the vital role Native Americans played in shaping the West while enjoying art and artifacts that highlight Native American history.
The community festival features live performances, storytelling, artist demonstrations, pottery and carving, as well as Native American-inspired food, including REZR’vation Only, a food truck featuring Native American-inspired cuisine that is owned and operated by a registered member of the Navajo Nation. The event starts with a Native American spiritual blessing, followed by a ceremonial drum circle that invites everyone to join.
The annual event is named in honor of the Payaya people, who were indigenous to the San Antonio area. “Yanaguana” was the word they used to describe what is now known as the San Antonio River. The festival has been held annually since the museum opened, with 2020’s event taking place virtually.
To learn more, visit (BriscoeMuseum.org).
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