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Every January, we recognize National Blood Donor Month to honor the selfless individuals who give the gift of life through blood donations. The observance was officially proclaimed by President Richard Nixon on December 31, 1969 and took effect in January 1970. January was chosen because winter months typically see declines in donations due to holiday travel, illness, and weather even though patient needs remain unchanged. Blooddonormonth.org , ImpactLife , the American Red

Every year Shake and Freeze Day (also known as “Shorts Day”) is observed on December 21st—the first day of winter and the shortest day of the year. Shakeandfreeze.com describes how on this day participants wear shorts (even in cold weather) as a symbolic gesture of “shaking” and “freezing” to draw attention to the two hallmark symptoms of Parkinson’s: tremor (shaking) and freezing of gait (temporary inability to move). The date also marks the death anniversary of James Park

History of the Great American Smokeout Each year, the third Thursday of November is designated the Great American Smokeout and invites people across the United States to take an important step toward quitting tobacco and nicotine. According to the cancerletter.com , the event was inspired by an earlier “Don’t Smoke Day” in Minnesota in 1974. This led to an initiative in California on November 18, 1976, when nearly one million people quit for the day. By 1977, the American Can