Northwestern community members rolled up their sleeves in Norris University Center’s Lake Room Tuesday as participants in a blood donation drive organized by the American Red Cross.
The drive saw around 45 blood donors — varying from students, faculty, staff and Evanston community members — but more volunteered to donate through walk-in appointments, phlebotomist and Red Cross volunteer Zyria Washington said.
American Red Cross offers volunteer and on-the-job training for various health and humanitarian services. Washington said this was her third time volunteering at a blood drive on NU’s campus.
“Today’s blood drive is just to get as many people to come in and donate,” Washington said. “The whole purpose of blood drives is for students to come to save lives.”
A busy drive can see up to 200 donors a day, she added.
Washington said the donated blood goes to a variety of groups in need — including children, mothers that recently gave birth and cancer patients — and the donations have reached people across the U.S. and even Mexico.
Weinberg sophomore Kate Worden said she enjoys donating blood regularly and finds it convenient that it’s hosted on campus.
“My entire family is just really big on blood donation. My grandpa loved to do it, so now we just all go as much as we can,” Worden said. “It’s five minutes from where I live, so I couldn’t not come.”
Worden said there also come some “perks” to donating blood — such as access to snacks and T-shirts. From check in until the very end of the procedure, she said the donation process doesn’t usually take longer than around 30 minutes.
The process includes verifying identity, health history and blood tests. Specifically, Washington said donors are asked to answer a series of questions to see if they are eligible to donate blood that day and are checked for metrics such as blood pressure, temperature, pulse rate or hemoglobin levels.
While people with all blood types are encouraged to donate, Washington said they often prioritize those with O positive and O negative.
Former NU Red Cross Club president and Weinberg senior Sarah Huang — who is a universal blood donor — said she has donated blood on campus at least five times since her freshman year.
Huang said she encourages other students to join the Red Cross club at NU to follow along with volunteering opportunities and other community impact efforts.
Additionally, Washington said that people who are interested in helping out with the Red Cross do not necessarily have to be donors. Many staff members came from backgrounds such as warehouse work or the food service industry, she said.
Washington said the Red Cross provides a thorough training program that lasts approximately seven weeks and covers essential procedures and policies, similar to those in medical labs.
“We don’t discriminate against what you did in the past,” Washington said. “This is just a job if you want to just help people. This is a place for you.”
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