WS students save lives

As rare as the chance to save a life may seem, WS students participate in such an opportunity by donating blood twice during each school year.
This year, the INOVA Blood Drive at WS was November 25, 2013. Students were encouraged to sign up to donate; those who obtained their parents’ permission had to fill out a questionnaire before donating to ensure that they fulfilled the health and weight requirements necessary to donate. A donor must be at least sixteen years old, a minimum of 110 pounds, and in good health.
“Since the INOVA Blood Drive at WSHS is organized by Key Club, I assisted in recruiting blood donors, collecting forms, scheduling appointments, and writing passes,” said WS Key Club president, senior Veronica Nguyen.
Because each donor must be at least sixteen years old, the majority of student donors are juniors and seniors. After he or she answers pertinent questions, the participant has his or her blood drawn by a member of the INOVA team.
“Everyone was really nice and experienced,” said junior Emily Hadfield, “It took a while to find the vein, but my overall experience was good.”
While most students had a relatively typical experience at the blood drive, involving having their blood drawn and being asked to sit down and rest for a while with a snack and/or drink, others do not respond as well to losing about a sixth of their blood in such a short time.
“They lay you down [to draw the blood],” said junior Sydney Cordoba, “when they sat me up, I fainted for a few minutes.”
Though the prospect of losing consciousness may be a potential deterrent for those students who have yet to donate, the idea to keep in mind is that donating blood really can make a difference in someone else’s life.
“I like to help people, and [donating blood] was just another way to do it,” said Cordoba.
Participating in a blood drive is something nearly everyone is able to do. Those with Type O negative blood are most strongly encouraged to donate, as they are known as universal donors because every other blood type can accept their blood. Nevertheless, all blood types are needed, so inviting peers to donate does only good.
“A bunch of my friends wanted to go, so I decided to go with them,” said Hadfield, “I thought it would be a great thing to do.”
The November 23 INOVA Blood Drive at WS was truly a success; it was also not the last opportunity students will have this school year to donate.
“This year we surpassed our original goal with 104 successful donors!” said Nguyen, “Of course, we hope to exceed this number at our next blood drive in March 2014. So if anyone missed the last blood drive, there’s still another chance to donate blood!”