On October 22, Westerville North’s student council will be partnering with the American Red Cross to hold a blood drive in the school’s auditorium. Students are able to register for a time slot using QR codes around the school. They have to be over seventeen to sign up without parents approval, and any students under seventeen need parent permission.
Student council advisor and English teacher at North Kristen Whiddon says, “We’re always aiming for thirty donors. [However,] the problem we face is often deferrals for low iron, low hemoglobin levels, and dehydration.”
Even though giving blood can be scary, student council president Shira Baumann (’26) says students should “think more of the longevity of giving blood. The process is shorter than the actual impact that donating blood will have.”
The process of donating blood should only take around ten minutes and the donor has to be 16 years old or above, and at least 110 pounds. According to the American Red Cross, if students are planning to donate blood they should try to eat foods that have a lot of iron like red meat, spinach, and raisins, as well as making sure they are hydrated and get a good night’s sleep.
Secretary at Westerville North Heidi Hall has given blood around ten times and has struggled with feeling faint in the past when giving blood. In turn, she tries to take iron pills in the weeks leading up to donating and schedules her appointment in the afternoon so she is able to get two full meals in before donating.
Hall recommends people should be drinking all morning staying “super, super over-hydrated”. Students should take their time getting up out of the chair, because Hall says “If you’re gonna get sick, sitting up fast will do it to you.”
In order to reach that goal of thirty donors, student council PR manager Ellee Jones (’26) has been making flyers to post around the school and writing announcements.
As an incentive to encourage more students to donate, student council events coordinator Isaac Cofie (’26) is reaching out to vendors like Wing Stop and Chick-fil-A to get gift cards for students after they give blood.
According to the American Red Cross, blood donations can help many people, including cancer, trauma, burn, and sickle cell patients.
