Area Sahib Shriners are conducting their annual Hospital Days fundraiser through Saturday to benefit their hospital transportation fund. Some 200 Shriners wearing their traditional red fezzes will stand at intersections and retail stores to accept donations from the public. The North Port Shrine Club will be collecting 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Saturday at the three Publix supermarkets in the city — at Toledo Blade and Price boulevards, Sumter and Price boulevards, and on Tamiami Trail in the Cocoplum Village Shops.

Donations will help defray the cost of patient transportation to the various Shriners Hospitals for Children, where local children receive care regardless of their families’ ability to pay. This transportation service is offered by over 30 volunteer drivers from Sahib Shriners, known as Roadrunners, who transport local children to their appointments at Shriners Hospitals for Children. Over the past two years, the Roadrunners have made more than 4,800 trips that have benefitted hundreds of children from Sarasota, Manatee, DeSoto and Hardee counties. The goal this year is to raise $50,000. For more information about Shriners International, visit www.shrinersinternational.org.