History of Walter L. Shepeard Community Blood Center
Shepeard Community Blood Center was opened on October 9, 1978, in a leased building on 12th Street in downtown Augusta. The name honors Walter L. Shepeard, one of the Center’s founders. Dr. Shepeard was chairman of the Department of Medical Technology at the Medical College of Georgia and a nationally recognized specialist in blood banking. Until his death in March 1978, he was devoted to the development of a blood center for the Augusta area.
In the beginning, the Center was responsible for the recruitment, drawing, processing and distribution of blood and blood components for patients in Doctors, St. Joseph and University hospitals. In December 1980, Wills Memorial Hospital in Washington, Georgia, became the fourth hospital served by Shepeard. Shepeard now serves 16 hospitals in Georgia and South Carolina.
Shepeard Community Blood Center Aiken opened in its current location in September 2001. Prior to this time, Shepeard operated out of a bloodmobile in the Aiken area to support the increased blood needs of the Aiken Regional Medical Centers open-heart surgery program. A temporary fixed site was established in the SRP building in 1999 until the permanent location was opened at 1019 Pine Log Road. In March 2007, Shepeard Community Blood Center Aiken relocated to 353 Fabian Drive, Aiken, SC in the Hitchcock Plaza Shopping Center. Shepeard Community Blood Center Aiken now operates a modern, state-of-the-art blood collection facility which includes, whole blood collection, platelet pheresis, and Alyx (automated red cell collection).
Today, patients in the local area are served by modern blood centers housing the most sophisticated equipment available. Fixed donation sites are available in Augusta, Martinez, Evans, and in Aiken, SC. Center staff is on call 24 hours a day, and inventories of all blood and components available in the Center and hospital blood banks are taken daily.
We look forward to a bright future of continuing to meet patient and hospital needs in our community. We thank our blood donors who consistently support the community blood program!