Donors save lives. It might be hard to believe, but even some West High students have already become donors by giving their blood at our annual blood drive. Whether for personal reasons or out of altruism, many people elected to have their blood drawn on December 6, showing that West High has a very caring student body.
Aidan Rho (11) and Sabina Anselmo (12) highlighted their experiences partaking in the Blood Drive. First-time donor Anselmo explained she “wanted to do it last year but . . . was too young,” referring to the minimum age requirement of 16. For Anselmo, nevertheless, the patient wait paid itself in gratitude: “it makes me feel good, knowing my blood is going to a good cause.”
Similarly, Rho began donating last year and continues to donate because he “just know[s he] wanted to,” expressing that “it’ll go to a good cause.” As a repeat donor, Rho was put into the “Super Red” category where blood platelets are taken instead of the blood itself, helping people in other ways. During his first time getting blood drawn, Rho felt “dizzy, kind of lightheaded . . . but compared to this year, it was not as bad.” Luckily for Rho, he never passed out or experienced complications. Each donor may react differently, but thankfully, students from the Red Cross Club are there to assist the donors with anything they need in order to feel better.
President of the Red Cross Club Pranati Anna (12) has been a member all four years of her high school career and has seen many things happen. Just last year Anna’s friend went pale on the floor, requiring “ice packs and everything.” While there are some caveats, rest assured that there are people trained and ready to help.
Like Anselmo and Rho, Anna shared her happiness to help blood recipients because “it just makes [her] feel good because [she] can’t donate blood but [has] gotten blood put in [her],” adding that she’s “glad that [the student donors] are really helping people out.”
The last person who shared their experience with the blood drive was Kelsey Newman, a nurse volunteer from the Red Cross who facilitated the event on campus. Newman could relate to the sentiments of fellow students: “I started when I was 18. My cousin had open heart surgery and I’m a universal donor (O negative) so I wanted to make sure that she had blood for her surgery,” she shared. “I’ve been donating ever since,” Newman said as she actively took care of a patient getting their blood drawn.
While donating can be admittedly scary, Newman candidly encouraged, “You know, I still don’t like being stuck with needles but I do it because it’s the right thing to do . . . a lot of our students here today are very brave and I appreciate them coming in and letting us do what we have to do,” noting that “everyone’s veins are a little different, just like our brains.” Perhaps it’s that difference that will entreat even more students to show up hoping to help out others.
