Two 11-year-old girls are helping increase the local blood supply.

Karly Rathbun and Shayla Schielein were both diagnosed with leukemia three years ago at the age of 8. They said during their battles they often waited hours at a time for blood transfusions because blood wasn’t available. Karly received 14 units of blood and Shayla received 11 during their treatments.

Last year, they thought of a way to make blood more available for those who need it and decided to host their first blood drive.

The girls along with their mothers, Mallory Schielein and April Rathbun, partnered with the American Red Cross Saturday morning at East Peoria’s Holiday Inn.

Both mothers said they want to stress the importance of making blood available.

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