Trim the following story from 360 words to 250 words.

Be sure to edit for any style or other problems.

Vest

Police say a bullet-proof vest likely saved the life of a Spring Valley officer who was recovering
Wednesday after the vest deflected a gunman's bullet away from his heart.

Declaring him a "real hero" police said Lt. Connor O'Riley interrupted the suspect and two possible
accomplices as they beat and robbed a 25-year-old woman late Tuesday. The assailants remained at-
large.

The woman, who's face was pistol-whipped, is lucky to be alive, police said. "These people are extremely
dangerous," said Lt. Ben Hurley, department spokesman. "When you have a suspect willing to kill a
uniformed officer, they have to be considered dangerous".

The shooting left the department shaken, since O'Riley became just the second police officer in over a
decade to be wounded in the line of duty. Sgt. Jesus Gonzales was shot in the forearm during the
execution of a search warrant twelve years earlier.

"All of our officers put their lives on the line on a daily basis," Hurley said. "And over the years, we've
had lots of officers get shot at, but through training and the grace of God, we have not become victims.
When something like this happense, it makes us remember we're all vulnerable."

The incident began at about 11:45 p.m. Tuesday when officers were dispatched to the scene at Park Hill
Apartments on North Park Hill Road on an assault in progress call. A woman was attacked in an area just
North of the apartment complex and dragged inside the building where the assailants continued beating
her, police records show.

As O'Connor, a 15-year veteran of the police force entered the building, a man walked out and fired two
shots from a handgun, striking the officer in the left had and the left side of his chest. A big bruise
formed beneath the vest where the bullet hit, Hurley said. "He definitely would have died if the bullet
would have penetrated," he added.
O'Riley returned fire as the suspect fled but it wasn't known if the bullets hit or missed their target.
O'Riley and the woman were taken to Memorial Hospital, where both were listed in good condition and
were expected to be released by Thursday.

Compile a roundup of local briefs from the following news stories, condensing each to no more than
three paragraphs.

Blood

The Red Cross will hold an emergency blood drive at it's chapter headquarters Friday from 9-5 to restock
dangerously low supplies.

Recent disasters and dips in donations have resulted in dangerously low supplies in the region,
according to Adelle Brown, a spokeswoman for the local chapter. Inclement weather is blamed primarily
for the drop in donations, she added.

Blood supplies around the nation have been strained recently by natural disasters, including tornadoes
and flooding, Brown noted.

"When one of these natural disasters strikes, we're called on to pull together and meet that urgent
need, but the normal demands for blood continue and it takes a toll on our supplies," she said. "Now we
need to restock because we would really be in dire straights if another disaster should hit anytime
soon."
Brown said that Red Cross volunteers will be standing by Friday to provide transportation for those who
need it. Those who wish to make an appointment can call 555-HELP, or you can just walk in, said Brown.

Also, the Old-Fashioned Churn is donating coupons for free ice cream to all of those donating blood for
the first time.

The Friday blood drive is in addition to the weekly regular collection which takes place at the chapter
headquarters, Brown said. "We're hoping for a really big turnout to boost our supplies," she said.

Fire

A fire totally destroyed an abandoned barn in Northwoods Township last night and burned about an
acre of land, all brush, before it was extinguished by volunteer firemen.

About twenty firemen responded to the blaze which was reported by nearby neighbors who saw smoke
and flames coming from the area at about 7:00 PM and called 911. It took about an hour to put out the
fire.

No one was injured, and a nearby farmhouse, where no one was home at the time, was not damaged,
said fire Capt. Howie Moshowitz.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, said Moshowitz, but he said it is believed that a cigarette
thrown by a passing motorist may have ignited the blaze.

There was no immediate estimate of the damage available. The barn's owner, Cecil Davis, who lives in
the nearby farmhouse but was away at the time of the blaze, said that the barn had been unused for
years. "I feel very luck," he said. "I think it was nearly empty. I don't think there was anything in it except
maybe some old National Geographic magazines the library wouldn't take and a broken-downs lawn
mower."

Hit-run

Police are seeking information about a hit-and-run incident that occurred Monday at the Quik-Stop on
Buehler Lane.

At about 5 p.m., according to police, a small red car struck the left side of a Chevrolet sport utility vehicle
just as the SUV's driver was pulling into the convenience store's parking lot, then it quickly sped off,
spraying gravel.

Police said the owner of the SUV was unable to get a good look at the car's license plate or the driver,
which he thinks was a young man. The red car's rear fender was dented and the left tail light was
smashed, according to the police report.

Anyone who might have witnessed the accident or have any information is asked to call the police at
555-3030.

Recycling

Mayor Sydney Delacroix has appointed a new director of recycling for the city. George Campanella, 38,
formerly manager of transportation for the city's Sanitation Department, was named to replace Marcia
Thomas, who plans to retire at the end of the month after ten years in the position.
Campanella says he hopes to raise citizen's awareness of recycling efforts and improve the efficiency of
collection. "I expect my background in managing the fleet of garbage trucks, as well as my knowledge of
the city, to come in handy," he said during a press conference at which his promotion was announced.

Participation in recycling is down, noted Campanella. Five years ago, residents were recycling about 10%
of their residential trash including glass, paper, aluminum, and plastic. That has declined to only about
8%.

Campanella says he wants to study the situation in depth before making any changes, but he is
considering expanding the area served by weekly curbside pickup and plastics might be dropped from
the program to save money.

Currently, some neighborhoods, particularly in the southern areas, have no curbside pickup, residents
must drop off recyclables at collection centers which are often vandalized, Campanella noted.