McPherson High School is preparing for its biannual blood drive that will happen on Monday, March 7th, from 9 am to 1:30 pm. The blood drive has been hosted by the MHS KAY’s club through American Red Cross.

   “I donated through the school blood drive last year,” said Thomas Smith, a junior, “It was a good experience. I felt like I was making a difference.”

     American Red Cross collects and prepares about 40 percent of the U.S. blood supply, and provides blood to around 2,600 hospitals and transfusion centers nationally.

  “I would definitely encourage others to do it as well,” said Smith.

  With parent permission, students can start to donate when they’re sixteen. Anyone over sixteen can donate without guardian consent. There are four steps to donating, starting with registration. After filling out papers and reading through the background information, a mini-physical will be performed to ensure your health. Blood pressure, pulse, body temperature, and hemoglobin are a few of the things measured in the mini-physical. Blood is tested for the safety of the donor and future recipients. The third step is donating, which usually takes 8 to 10 minutes. Once it’s over, workers provide refreshments and give a 10 to 15 minute break before letting donors leave.

  “I donated blood the first chance I got because I’ve wanted to do it since I was little,” said Hailee Snyder, who donated at the beginning of the year.

  Last semester, an American Red Cross truck visited MHS to take blood donations from teachers and students who signed up in weeks previous. However, this blood drive will be happening on a larger scale inside the school’s gym.

  Austin Eldridge, junior, has donated before, but not through MHS. Nonetheless, he said it “made me feel as I did a good deed that day. I would recommend giving blood to anyone.”

  On redcrossblood.org donation locations and dates are available to those who want to donate, and MHS students can sign up to give through Mrs. Harlin, the KAY’s sponsor during school. 

  “It was a great experience and I plan on doing it again this year,” said Smith.

If you plan on donating, please tweet us about your experience, or just a picture at mhshighlife!