The Lamar P. Higgins ballrooms were crowded with students and community members eager to save lives at SGA’s biannual blood drive in collaboration with The American Red Cross.
The “Beat South” blood drive encouraged students to donate blood ahead of Troy Football’s rivalry game against South Alabama.
With a total of 57 donors on the first day, the organization is projected to meet their goal of 300 pints over the two-day drive. Donors were able to schedule appointments, but walk-ins were accepted as well.
Five of these donors were power red donors meaning they donated two pints each.
Tuesday’s appointments also offered power red slots, which means double the donations and double the lives saved.
“Troy University consistently goes above and beyond on their blood drives and has been a premier blood donation partner the entirety of my time as Account Manager,” said Nicholas Guyton, an account manager of blood services at The American Red Cross.“That is a testament to the faculty, staff, students, and community of Troy.
“Specifically, Mr. Sadaris Williams is a champion of blood donation and making connections within the community of Troy and ensuring we have successful blood drives.”
Williams, who serves as assistant director of student involvement and leadership at Troy University, has been helping set up the SGA blood drives for the past 10 years.
“Twice a year I give blood,” Williams said. “I do it because I’m O positive. That means that anyone can get my blood except people that are O negative, so I know that my blood is in high need.
“There’s always a blood shortage, and I can save more than six lives every time I give blood, so I try to give blood as many times as I can.”
Both The American Red Cross and Troy SGA would like to emphasize the importance of donating blood as a young adult.
“Our age, college age students, actually donate the least; so I really feel like as healthy, young individuals we can do our part and give blood,” said Anna-Marie Fulton, SGA blood drive coordinator and a junior biomedical science major from Mobile, Alabama.
Guyton agrees, saying the average blood donor is 55 years old. Guyton aims to educate young adults on the importance of donating blood.
“The harsh reality is as we grow older, we are more likely to have other health concerns that preclude us from being able to donate blood,” Guyton said.“We are in desperate need of young, healthy people who understand how important it is to donate blood.”
Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood and a single donation can save up to three of those lives.
The most important thing that Guyton wants to share is what he calls the ‘1, 2, 3s of Blood Donation.’
“One, a national poll asked people who had never donated blood or don't regularly donate blood why they weren't blood donors. The number one reason given was ‘I’ve never been asked.’ Two, every two seconds in the United States someone needs blood or blood products to maintain their health or life. Three, only 3% of age eligible donors in the United States donate blood annually,” said Guyton.
Anyone who would like to read inspiring testimonials or sign up for future blood drives can visit redcrossblood.org.
Comments