On Easter Sunday, three men known as the “Brothers of Blood” settled down for their bi-weekly Apheresis donation at the Blood Bank of Alaska off Laurel Street in Anchorage.

But they're not your typical blood brothers.

Jeff Wheaton, Shon Dozark and Luke Hobbs got together while donating blood three years ago which is when Wheaton said he got the idea to start the club.

Although they are not related like siblings, these men still share a strong bond on the Trima system, which allows blood donors to give specific blood elements.

When blood is drawn from a donor, it is separated into platelets, plasma or red cells.

Platelets are an especially important blood component because it is often used to support chemo and radiation therapies.

The Brothers of Blood promote blood donation by posting on Facebook, word of mouth and even participating in a commercial for the Blood Bank of Alaska.

“We just feel it's just a vital part of the community. Why not help others and have fun at the same time?” said Wheaton.

The vivacious trio is providing crucial elements to save lives. Years ago, Wheaton lost one of his good friends to the disease.

“Actually she was my best friend’s wife. I had introduced them in high school and she contracted leukemia at a young age. She was in her early 30s,” said Wheaton.

All three men say being on Trima is a way to give back.

“My daughter had her heart surgery when she was four and she's 15 now. Someone had to give blood for her and now this is my way of giving back,” said Dozark.

“With all the paper work going through and doing the machine and everything, it’s about one to two hours, but that's still not that much every other week,” said Hobbs.

The higher the platelet count, the higher number of units can be donated.

Its shelf life is only five days—three of which are spent in testing.

To be eligible to donate you must:

• Have donated whole blood before to the Blood Bank of Alaska
• Be able to spend one to two hours at a time
• Weigh at least 113 pounds
• Aged 17* to 74

*Interested donors under 18 years old must have a guardian's signature.