The blood collected from the fall blood drive has the potential to help 186 people in need.
More than 100 people presented to give blood last Wednesday. The Coffee Memorial collected 62 units of blood, and 94 students and faculty members donated. Key Club helped organize and carry out the blood drive. Students had to weigh at least 115 pounds and be at least 16 years old to give blood. For each class period, two club members delivered notes to the students signed up to donate.
“I was really impressed by the number of first-time donors we had,” Key Club sponsor Lance Culbert said. “A lot of people who were really nervous who came and donated anyway.”
At the beginning of the day, the blood center’s computers did not react well with the school’s network, which caused a 45-minute to an hour-and-a-half wait.
“There will be a two-day blood drive in the spring,” Culbert said. “Maybe we won’t have quite the backlog. That’s going to be on Feb. 19 and 20.”
Culbert did not donate at the blood drive but he does go to the Coffee Memorial Blood Center to donate.
“You can donate every 56 days if you are just a regular donor,” Culbert said. “You can probably donate two more times before the time we have another blood drive if you go up to the blood center. Every unit that is donated can help up to three people.”
The Coffee Memorial staff members told Culbert that they enjoy working the CHS.
“They tell me our students are unfailingly polite, kind, and respectful,” Culbert said. “There are always some people who don’t feel well after they donate, but everybody did well.”
