Your donation of blood can save up to three lives.
On October 13, Choate Rosemary Hall will take part in a school-wide Community Service Day, during which the Red Cross Club will host a blood drive.
Choate’s Red Cross Club has hosted blood drives in conjunction with the American Red Cross for years. The club is part of many across the nation, which all act under the umbrella of the American Red Cross Association. It has become a normal part of the Choate schedule to see a blood drive hosted by the Red Cross.
The club handles a lot of the responsibility that comes with hosting this annual blood drive and recruiting volunteers. This year’s club president, Gordon Clark ’19, organizes student and faculty volunteers and plans the blood drive in order to make it run smoothly. “I want everyone involved to be comfortable donating blood, and I want everyone to feel comfortable volunteering at Choate,” Clark said.
The blood drive is an opportunity for Choate students to connect with people from outside of campus and engage with the Wallingford community. Bringing the outside world’s needs closer to Choate is one outcome of the blood drive. This year, Clark said, “with the help of [Director of Community Service] Ms. [Melissa] Koomson and the cabinet, we have gotten the club off the ground,” Clark said.
At this stage, the club is using multiple platforms in order to reach the students, recruiting volunteers and spreading awareness about the initiative. The Red Cross aids the club with whatever it needs. “Working with the Red Cross of America has been very easy and pleasurable. They give our club many opportunities to rally students into helping those in need and provide much of the material we need to host these events,” Clark said.
Giving blood at the drive takes a maximum of twenty minutes, a short and relatively painless activity. “One donation of blood can save the lives of up to three people in desperate need of blood. It is important for Choate students to partake in this initiative in order to help these people,” Clark urged.
