Parkway North Hosts Annual Fall Blood Drive

On Oct. 31, members of the Parkway North community showed up at the Parkway North gym to give blood at the annual blood drive sponsored by National Honor Society. With the holidays approaching, many people where in the spirit of giving. Afterall, there isn’t a much better way to give than to save a few lives.

“The perks of food, a free shirt, and a sick arm band were pretty nice. But the thought of saving three lives in this process was really motivating,” said senior Tobi Ola.

On average, donating blood can save up to three lives. This helps with those in hospitals who need blood transfusions, struggle to deal with natural disasters such as the recent Hurricane Matthew, and many others in dire situations.

“I give blood because by doing so, I save lives. It’s an easy way to make a positive impact. I would absolutely do it again. Anytime I have to opportunity to help other people, I’ll take it,” said junior Lauren Bakula.

To donate blood, a volunteer must be 17-years-old or 16-years-old with parental consent, be in good health, weigh at least 110 lbs, and not have given blood in the past eight weeks.

“Seventy-five pints of blood were donated [which] totaled to be able to save up to 220 lives. Sadly, there were 25 deferrals of students who tried to donate but were not able to,“ said senior Claire Vance, student director of the blood drive. “We had a goal of 90 pints, but unfortunately we were not able to meet it.”

Last Fall, the drive raised ninety-four units of blood.

“Hopefully, we will be able to surpass it [ninety units] this Spring,” said Vance.

The blood has been donated to the Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center, and is then passed to those in need of blood and other hospitals. MVRBC is a provider of over fifty hospitals in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, and Wisconsin, providing more than 4000 blood drives every year.

by Sagar Samuel, profile perfectionist