A local family is again asking the community to give the ultimate birthday gift – life.

At 4 months old, Mark Beverly Jr. died due to a blood clot in his aortic valve.

His grandmother, Tina Elmore, said when her daughter, Brandy, was faced with what would have been his first birthday, a few years ago, it was overwhelming.

“My daughter came to me and said she should be doing a birthday party and since she couldn’t, we should do the blood drive,” she said.

That was three years ago.

Now the family needs help making its annual Mark Beverly Jr. blood drive a success. At present, only 12 people are signed up for the 40-person blood drive, Elmore said.

“You never know when you might need it,” Elmore said. “And I don’t like needles either, but it’s a way of showing life and love. It’s also a good time to socialize.”

Elmore said she is taking appointments, which are in 15-minute intervals, beginning at 12:15 p.m. Wed., July 27, and lasting until 5:15 p.m., at Green Tree Christian Fellowship.

“If they make an appointment, they don’t have to wait that long,” she said.

In addition, all donors will receive a T-shirt and will be entered into a regional drawing for $3,000.

To sign up, call 427-0023.

In addition, there will be a blood drive in member of the Ramer twins, Kendai and Brayden, on Fri., July 29, at the Ramer twins memorial blood drive, held at LBWCC’s MacArthur campus conference center from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and in Andalusia at Superior Bank from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m.