Vitalant hosted a blood drive at AGHS on April 29 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:35 p.m. To donate, volunteers had to have signed up prior to the day of the event, and were required to be 16 years old (with parent permission) or older. Students who donated blood received five hours of community service and gave back to their community.
“AG High School has been doing blood drives for twenty or more years,” Vitalant’s account manager, Beau Mercurio, said.
Vitalant brought machines from their truck into the MPR to collect donations; it takes the employees an hour and a half to set up their equipment. The bus that holds donation equipment is usually considered their “Blood Mobile” and is used for mobile blood donations.
According to Mercurio, blood drives are hosted every day at blood banks and sometimes in churches and schools. The blood is used to help local hospitals, and 95% of the blood collected at the AGHS blood drive was sent to Arroyo Grande Hospital.
“It goes to help patients with transplant surgery, sickle cell patients, trauma, and people who have been in accidents and lost a lot of blood,” Mercurio said.
The blood also helps mothers who lose blood during delivery, and also helps premature babies who need blood transfusions. Vitalant is planning to host the blood drive for eternity.
