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by EMILY MELTON
News Reporter
Appalachian State University could soon experience the largest student-run blood drive in North Carolina.
If successful, the drive could be bigger than the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s 20th Annual Carolina Blood Drive held on June 3.
With a goal of 1,000 pints, Appalachian’s second annual blood drive will be held Sept. 25 from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Holmes Convocation Center.
The drive is sponsored by the Red Cross and Appalachian and Community Together (ACT).
 (l to r) Senior health promotions Laura A. Miller, senior psychology, Spanish major Kelsey D. Smith, and senior biology major Katie A. Rifenburg volunteer at the Red Cross Lunchin on Thursday for this year’s homecoming blood drive. Photo by Alisha Park |
It is the official service project for this year’s homecoming festivities.
Last year, 663 pints of blood were donated, exceeding a goal of 500.
On Aug. 28, a luncheon was held to kick-off the drive.
Representatives from each organization on campus were invited to attend.
Jaclyn M. Johnson, a junior nursing major spoke of her experience as a blood recipient.
“A few
months into school my freshman year, I started getting sick. I ended up
going home to see a doctor,” Johnson said. “A couple days later, my
parents took me to the emergency room because it was getting so bad.”
A few days later, Johnson said she was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia.
She was in the hospital for 95 days and nights and received about 40 pints of blood and platelets.
“I
wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the Red Cross and the blood that was
given to me,” Johnson said. “You never know who’s going to need blood;
I never thought that I would.”
“I can only [hope] we will meet our goal this year,” said Kelsey D. Smith, a senior psychology major.
Smith is responsible for all donors and volunteers.
She handles the scheduling and organization on the day of the drive and records homecoming points for each organization.
Smith believes the donations are required to save lives.
“North Carolina uses over 1,000 pints [of blood] every single day,” Smith said.
Kate A.
Johnson, assistant director of the ACT volunteer program said the drive
will accept walk-ins, but they may have to wait until time is available
for them to donate.
“The Red
Cross calculates people who sign up for blood drives and people who
actually show up,” Johnson said. “…and a certain number of people are
expected not to show.”
The Red Cross used this formula at Appalachian’s blood drive last year.
“We took
in walk-ins because we thought there was room for them, but we realized
that they were causing the time issue we experienced,” Johnson said.
She believes the process will go much smoother this year. Individuals can sign-up at specialevents.appstate.edu .
They can
choose to either donate up to two pints of blood or volunteer on
location. Sign-ups can take place up until the day before the event.
The blood drive will be held on Parents Weekend, and students are encouraged to suggest their parents sign up to donate .
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