Donate blood or else! Photo by the American Red Cross.
Every day, the American Red Cross saves lives with the blood generously donated by individuals like you. However, in January of this year, the Red Cross was forced to declare an emergency blood shortage, citing the lowest number of blood donors in the past twenty years. Your blood donation can make a significant difference in someone’s life.
The Red Cross has been pushing for more blood drives, campaigns, and donations. In April, Lake Land College (LLC) partnered with the organization to host a blood drive and will be having another one in June.
During the April blood drive, LLC was able to reward donors with free t-shirts themed around the recent release of Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire. This unique incentive, along with Marc Dal Ponte’s offer of extra credit for blood donation, led to an increase in donors. One such donor, Jacey Goodwin, was inspired by this and decided to donate.
As a first-time donor, Goodwin was nervous, but willing to help and earn extra credit while she was at it. “I never thought I would donate blood because of how anxious it made me. But when I had the opportunity to donate for extra credit, I figured, why not,” she said. Goodwin thanks the extra credit for pushing her to donate. “I will donate again because I think it is super important to help, maybe not soon because that was a lot. I think people should donate if they can, though,” Goodwin said with a laugh.
Another donor, named Isaac, was motivated to donate for his grandma. His grandma had to undergo many medical procedures where blood was needed. Unfortunately, during her treatment, they had a hard time finding the blood type needed for her. Eventually, they found it, and she was able to have surgery safely. Isaac encourages everyone to donate. “If you do it (donate), you know that you’re helping someone else who needs it. You have blood to spare and another person’s life could be saved with it.”
A single blood donation can save up to three lives. There are also health benefits for the person donating blood. According to the Columbia University Irving Medical Center, donating blood regularly is linked to lowering blood pressure and a lower risk of heart attacks. This is because donating blood helps lower the viscosity of the blood, which, if too high, has been associated with blood clots, heart attacks, and stroke.
So, get out there and donate if you can! Be on the lookout for more information about the upcoming American Red Cross blood drive, hosted by the Student Government Association in June.
