On Oct. 29, Inova Hospital hosted blood drives at high schools all over the Dc Metro Area. The blood drive made stops at a number of Northern Virginia schools, and McLean was no exception.
Ms. Cara Mosley help organize the drive, and says it was the most successful yet. “The government really needed our blood. Due to the government shutdown, hospitals all over the country lost millions of units of blood. So McLean students have made an impact far greater than they even know, I think. Which is awesome.” says Ms. Mosley.
Over 120 of the eligible students decided to give blood, many new to the blood donating process. “This was my first time donating blood since every other year we had a blood drive at school I had crew practice the same day,” senior Tala Aloul says.
McLean student donated for a variety of reasons.
“My favorite part of the Blood Drive was sitting down with my friends enjoying each others’ companies. All of us were really happy we helped save a life,” says senior Fiona Zaloshnja. “I really wanted to help, plus the shirts look really cool,” says senior Trevor Hautau. “My favorite part of the blood-donating experience is how good I felt about giving blood to others who need it once I was done and in the recovery area, despite how dizzy I was, I think it was totally worth it,” says Brooke Inglese. “My favorite part of donating blood was definitely the grape juice and snacks they give away after you donate,” says Senior Elijah Levine.
Students interested in donating blood who missed this session shouldn’t worry. Inova hosts multiple high school blood drives throughout the school year. The next one is scheduled to happen around March. Anyone 16 years old or older can participate with parental consent. Make sure to sign up and save a life.
