SFHS students and FBLA members host blood drive

Shree Delwadia

Recruting all around. FBLA members and members from the American Red Cross organization were in the main hall atrium recruiting many blood donors. Students also had the opportunity to learn more information about donating blood.

Shree Delwadia and Lisa Holiday
February 1, 2020

Currently, the American Red Cross is suffering from a major blood crisis. With less than a five day supply of blood on hand, the organization is looking for those who would like to donate blood. Red Cross provides about half of the United States’ blood needed to help those with illnesses, those in surgery, and those who are victims of certain accidents. Even though all blood types are appreciated, the current crisis is for Type O positive and negative since this is known as the universal blood type. Type O blood is used mostly every single day to help fight off life-threatening infections or conditions. Therefore, having a readily supply of any type of blood is hand is essential to the survival of many patients who are enduring life-threatening procedures.

The American Red Cross is a voluntary service guided by a board of directors. Red Cross’ mission is to provide aid for any person in need of blood; this includes people in the military, veterans, or any person who needs help. Red Cross does not discriminate or refuse to help any person. Blood drives are hosted by Red Cross where generous volunteers donate their blood, thus saving lives in the future.

Shree Delwadia
The blood drop. The school’s blood drop engaged with students during their Flex time to encourage their donation of blood. Students also snapped many selfies with the blood drop to share the news about the need for blood donations.

South Forsyth High Schools’s students and Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA) organizations took the initiative and hosted a blood drive on campus to support the American Red Cross organization. SFHS FBLA is an organization designed for business and computer science students; the club encompasses a variety of competitions, unique leadership positions, and many different community service opportunities.

Minakshi Shivananda
Donation in Progress. SFHS set up booths in Room 156 to accommodate the variety of blood donors. Many teachers, students, and other faculty donated blood to help support the major blood crisis.

The blood drive lasted two days, January 29th and 30th, at 8:15 A.M. to 1:30 P.M. Students 16 and older could not only volunteer to help out in the blood drive, but they were also given the opportunity to donate blood.

FBLA members helped the blood drive by recruiting blood donors during lunch. Additionally, during Flex Time, the ‘blood drop’ was walking around the campus, taking selfies with students and teachers and encouraging them to donate blood.

“I’ve always wanted to donate blood to help out others, but I could never before because I was in a foreign country,” said senior Rishitha Cheemarla. “I was very excited to participate in the blood drive this year.”

Those scheduled to donate blood were told to eat food rich in iron, as well as stay rested and hydrated the night before. After donating blood, the blood drive provided snacks and other beverages to its donors to show gratitude for their donation and to help them stay healthy.

With donors ranging from admin and teachers to even SFHS students, the blood drive was quite successful as it received several donors.

“We are pleased to say that we had 64 people signed up to donate blood and several students volunteer from both the SFHS Red Cross club and FBLA,” said Shivani Murugapiran, FBLA Deputy VP of Community Service.

About the Writers

Shree Delwadia, Editor-In-Chief

Shree Delwadia is excited to be part of The Bird Feed as a senior! This year is her fourth year on staff, and she cannot wait to take on her new responsibilities as the Editor-In-Chief. By working on the staff as a writer and an editor, she has learned a variety of communication, teamwork, and accountability skills that she will take on to other roles in her life. At school, she is a part of MDJunior, Beta Club, and UNICEF. In her spare time, she loves spending time with her friends and family or discovering new things to do. Two of her ride-or-die tv shows are Grey’s Anatomy and Friends. Moreover, Shree has a strong interest in medicine and hopes to pursue a career in healthcare one day. You can contact her via twitter @ShreeDBirdFeed or using her email [email protected].

Lisa Holiday, Staff Writer

Lisa Holiday is a senior at South Forsyth High School participating in journalism for her second year. Her passions include photography, writing, and helping others. She has done volunteer work through The National Honors Society and Key Club for Meals By Grace and other organizations. You can find her taking and editing photos of nature or enjoying a cup of coffee with her friends. She joined The Bird Feed in hopes of making an impact on other people’s lives by investigating the world of psychology in her journalism as well as being more involved in school events. You can contact her at [email protected] or her Twitter, @Lisa91845159.

Minakshi Shivananda, News Editor

Minakshi Shivananda is a sophomore at South Forsyth High School and is taking on her 2nd year at The Bird Feed. She is the News editor this year on The Bird Feed and can’t wait to start working with the new staff. At South, she is an active member of HOSA and has been playing the piano for 9 years, outside of school. She aspires to live in Chicago and loves to travel. She is looking forward to another great year on the staff! You can contact her at [email protected] or through her Twitter, @MinakshiShivan2.