SUMTER, S.C. -- Sumter residents came together Friday to donate blood in honor of a fallen police officer.
The second annual Chuck Nesbitt Memorial Blood Drive took place at the Sumter County Public Library from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Nesbitt was an officer with the Sumter Police Department. He was killed in a car accident on duty while he was returning from Columbia in January of 2011.
Senior Corporal Joey Duggan said last year they collected 53 pints of blood. As of noon Friday, they already had 32 pints. It is another example of the strong community support in giving back.
"Law enforcement is a really tight knit community. With this being one of our fallen officers, we've got the police department, sheriff's department, all of our local first responders. You give one pint of blood can save three lives is what they say. So anytime we're giving, we're saving lives as well."
Blood donors also got free t-shirts and entered a red cross drawing to win a thousand dollars.