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The Fair Grove National Honors Society (NHS) partnered with the Community Blood Center of the Ozarks (CBCO) to host the winter blood drive on December 1 at Fair Grove High School.
All of the blood donations will be sent to local hospitals to help patients in the surrounding areas. Amy Johnson, Fair Grove High School teacher and NHS sponsor said, “Successful donors can possibly save three lives with a single donation.” By taking a small percentage of their time to donate, many donors have the chance of saving lives.
The Winter Blood Drive took place in the FEMA building at Fair Grove High School. It was running from 9 a.m to 2 p.m. High school students and community members were encouraged by NHS members to participate and donate.
NHS had an overall goal of 65 donors for this year. Over the course of the day 80 people came to donate blood, 69 of them counted towards the overall goal that NHS has planned for. CBCO had many volunteers to help keep the blood drive running smoothly.
NHS members also carried a responsibility. Members and officers both volunteered during the school day to help assist the CBCO workers. Senior and NHS Vice President, Hannah Bruner (12), said, “To prepare for the blood drive, we went to a conference in December that discussed our roles, and what we need to do to prepare for the blood drive.”
As an incentive for students to donate, CBCO usually offers t-shirts for the students and community members who donate. This year they offered flannel blankets for every single donor. NHS members received one service hour credit for donating as well.
Students may be scared, but they don’t have anything to worry about, Johnson said, “The CBCO is a professional organization of highly trained and dedicated staff members. They will do everything they can to help everyone feel at ease.” Donors also had the option of having a NHS member to sit by them to talk them through it.
After everyone finished donating, they had a rest station filled with snacks and drinks that they were all welcome to. Donors could sit down and watch High School Musical while they recharged for the rest of the day.
The blood drive did more than provide blood to people in need, Senior and NHS President, Stephanie Dunham (12), stated, “On a smaller scale, this blood drive provides an opportunity for our community to come together and do something that we know helps impact those around us.”
