DENNIS S: I saw the title and wondered if you were taking me up on the everclear
If you add a sacrificial layer atop your work piece for the first blank, you then can re-use that sacrificial blank atop all the subsequent blanks you make. The guide bore hole will always line up and if you chose to you could rough the sacrificial blank slightly smaller to help with the friction. A 1/8 --1/4 inch scrap of plywood would be a candidate for the throw away piece. Banging and wedging and punching the sacrificial shouldn't be a problem then to remove the blanks as they are completed .
I have a question to go with the situation. Can the hole saw bit be sprayed with some type of lube to make the blank removal easier? If so what would the lube be, something like wax or a tool spray?