Giving blood, saving lives
Inevitably, disease and accidents strike numerous people around the world each year. The need for blood donation is constant. Every two seconds, someone needs a blood transfusion.
Fortunately, there are many generous blood donors willing to step up and make a difference. Even the younger generations make a contribution. Annually, thousands of student leaders across the country organize blood drives at their schools. Their efforts have a significant impact on those in need of blood. In fact, almost 20 percent of the millions of donations made each year come from high school and college blood drives.
Here at Lindhurst High School, our student leaders host two blood drives during the academic year, and each time, our sign-up sheet never fails to be completely filled.
Tuesday was LHS's first blood drive of this school year. Each donation our students gave will be able to save up to three lives, which highly encourages us to continue our annual blood drives and increases the strength of the community within our school.
Students who are a part of the Executive Student Council volunteered to rally our school around this cause that saves millions of lives each year. From wearing the Drippy costume to recruit blood donors to promoting the blood drive through posters and fliers, students proved to be exceptionally proactive.
Hosting blood drives also allows our students demonstrate leadership and promote teamwork. A number of underclassmen in the LHS Leadership class were chosen to shadow students who worked Tuesday's blood drive. Through this method, LHS can expect experienced student blood drive coordinators for next year's drive. One person can't manage it all, so in order to run such a big event, we've learned to work as a team.
"It's an amazing experience to put on a blood drive," said Fabiola Perez, a senior at LHS and one of the blood drive student coordinators. "We can help people survive and feel good about doing it."
BloodSource says, "When you give blood, yes, you do save lives." Students at LHS understand that the gift of blood is one of the most gracious acts of kindness that one human being can do for another. It's not just about getting the opportunity to skip a class or two to give blood. It's much more than that.
"Giving blood gives you a sense of fulfillment, knowing that you're helping to save someone's life," said Destiny Cantu, a senior at LHS and a former blood donor.
I've attempted to donate blood myself. Unfortunately, I didn't meet the criteria, so for now, serving as one of the student leaders is how I give back to others. However, when I meet all the requirements to be a blood donor, my name will be the first one on the sign-up sheet!
Overall, the experience of giving up just a small portion of your life to make a significant difference in another's is definitely rewarding, and if you're eligible to do so, there's no reason not to.
Jamie Yang is a senior at Lindhurst High School. Her column appears every six weeks in Education.
