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By Morgan Gurwell

During the blood drive on Thursday, Oct. 22, sophomore Haley Harvey is excited to help others through blood donation. "I read this story about this little girl, thanking the people that donated blood," Harvey said. "It made me realize that my blood is actually going to help someone. I feel good about it."

Students and staff donated 77 units of blood to the Community Blood Center on Thursday, Oct. 23 during the fall blood drive. StuCo helped organize the blood drive, coordinating with the Community Blood Center and promoting the event at school.

A total of 98 people registered to donate, but 21 were not able to because they failed to meet qualifications. To give blood, donors must pass a number of requirements, including being 16 years or older and weighing at least 110 pounds.

This was junior Kelsey Poje’s first time meeting the age requirement for a blood drive. Before donating, she said she “got lots of sleep, ate a hearty breakfast and drank lots of water” to ensure she would be able to give blood.

“I wanted to help people and I thought it would be a neat opportunity to experience,” Poje said.

Senior Kara Rohr also gave blood for the first time. Although she was nervous beforehand, she said the process went quickly and smoothly. To Rohr, donating was worth the nerves.

“I just feel like, if you’ve got 10 to 12 pints in you, giving one pint to someone who needs it … that’s an easy thing to do,” Rohr said.

Senior class president Tyler Shurley said blood drives give those who need blood the opportunity to receive it, and that is why it is important for students and staff to donate. To prepare for this year’s first drive, Shurley and other StuCo members coordinated with the Community Blood Center and promoted registration through social media and hanging posters around the school. On the day of the event, StuCo members helped set up, worked shifts to help students as they donated and cleaned up afterward.

“[Helping with the drive] is a better opportunity for me to try and get more people to donate so that more lives can be saved through the donation of blood,” Shurley said.

According to the Community Blood Center, one out of every three people will need a blood donation during their lifetime. For Poje, facts like this helped her decide to give her blood.

“I think there’s a lot of people who need it and a lot of places that can use it,” Poje said. “I don’t think people realize how much it is needed and how big of an influence it makes.”