DSU will host another blood drive on November 9th in the Gardner Center Ballroom. Graphic by Emily Wight.
By: Samantha Stokes
Dixie State University holds its annual blood drive as the need for donated blood will never go away.
The blood drive was done through the American Red Cross in the Gardner Center ballroom Oct. 27 and 28. The American Red Cross will also hold another blood drive Nov. 9. Blood donations are important because they save countless lives each year.
Steven Young, the communications specialist for Dixie Power, said: “We’ve seen recently there is a shortage of blood nationally, and those of us on the American Red Cross email chain are constantly being bombarded with requests for blood donations. I don’t know if the need is necessarily now more than ever, but I do know they need it now.”
The American Red Cross partnered with businesses in the community to give all donors a FIIZ gift card and a Dixie Direct book to incentivize people to donate.
A St. George resident Marie Gardiner donated for the first time Nov. 4.
“It only takes a few minutes and is no more painful than going to the doctor to get a blood sample, and you’re benefiting a lot of people,” Gardiner said.
Donating only takes about 10 minutes, and donating just one unit of blood can help up to three people in need.
Sarah Reynolds, who heard about the drive through a poster at FIIZ, said she knows people who have benefited from receiving blood and knowing there is a shortage also motivated her to show up to the drive.
Reynolds said, “I don’t think people really realize how much it helps.”
Taylor Fait, a sophomore biology major from Mona, has donated three times.
“If you plan on donating you should eat a good meal and get good sleep to ensure you have a positive experience and don’t feel sick after donating,” Fait said.
Blood drives are a way to pull the community closer together by serving people who need medical support. Nurse Cheryl Rock said she donates about twice a year because she’s seen firsthand in her profession that people need blood all the time.
According to the American Red Cross, every two seconds someone in the United States needs blood, which means that donations are extremely valuable.
Cancer survivor Lisa Hendrick from Marietta, Georgia, said, “It might just be a gift card or a simple service for you, but when you’re that sick and you need a transfusion, getting blood can be the difference between life and death.”
