Karns HOSA hosted the schoolwide blood drive on Monday, October 24th. The HOSA staff and students put in their full effort into making the event run smoothly. Students from all across the school attended, taking time out of their day to get their blood drawn for numerous hospitals across the country.

Originally, HOSA would draw the blood inside the school, but they’ve brought medical vans because of Covid-19. Students sixteen and above were encouraged to get their blood drawn, and as long as they have the appropriate qualifications depending on how quality their blood is, they were able to get their blood drawn.

The blood then gets taken to the blood bank, a place where blood can be stored for a period of time. After that, the blood is dispersed to numerous hospitals around the region. 

Not only are the students putting in an admirable initiative to help those in need, but it’s also incredibly beneficial for the school. The organization running the blood drive will actually pay the school for this blood, funding things that wouldn’t be accessible otherwise. 

The blood drive relies on the incredible staff for organization, but also the students for making sure it runs smoothly.

“In the blood drive I’ll be checking students in and making sure they get to the right bus, and once they’re done I’ll be walking back to class,” said HOSA committee member and officer Emily Reynolds. 

Passing out is common when getting blood drawn, so students are putting in the initiative to keep them safe by preventing them from falling and injuring themselves. 

“I’m going to be signing people in, giving them snacks, and walking them back to class,” said Ariah Mayotte, HOSA committee member and officer Ariah Mayotte. They’re making a big difference by signing them in and walking them to class, also by offering snacks to encourage and congratulate the students who taken time out of their day to get it drawn.

While the blood drive has already happened, it’s not too late to donate blood!

“There’s blood drives everywhere, so if they think they want to do it and they missed this one, there’s the mobile unit travel; it’s at grocery stores a lot of times. You can actually go to the blood center and get it done too,” said Dana Popa, organizer of HOSA. There’s plenty of opportunities to get blood drawn, and for those who were unable to donate blood on that Monday, it’s still very accessible for those who want to potentially save lives. 

The HOSA blood drive was a major success within Karns. Many students signed up, and everything went very smoothly. The HOSA students did a great job helping people, assuring the next blood drive in the spring will be a success.