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High school students give blood to Red Cross
By Shawn Strannigan

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"Blood is definitely flowing around the gym," said junior Joel Meyer, as his peers sat with tubes in their arms.

Meyer is part of the student leadership team that hosted the Red Cross Blood drive at the high school last week.

The gymnasium had been temporarily converted into a medical unit with every station occupied by blood donors.

"Our goal is to raise 55 pints of blood," said Meyer, "so we tried to recruit about 80 people."

"We've had 77 sign up so far," added Brittany Burnside, another student organizer of the event, "but lots of kids were turned away because of illness -- mono has been going around the school."

Since 1995, Sisters High School students have donated blood at the annual Red Cross blood drive. Faculty members also give generously, as well as drop-in folks from the community.

The Red Cross' blood supply is currently on "yellow alert," which means that the organization has not collected enough to provide what hospitals require.

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Michelle Banks, a junior who donated blood, related that the experience wasn't too painful.

"It was the first time I ever gave blood," said Banks. "First I had to fill out a questionnaire to make sure I was qualified. Then I had to take a mini-health test -- they took my blood pressure, temperature, checked my pulse -- stuff like that. They even pricked my finger to see if my blood was thick enough to use.

"Then they had me lay down in a lawn chair, gave me a blanket and looked for a good vein," Michelle continued. "They took a pint of blood, plus five other test tubes full. Then I got to drink juice and eat cookies. It was cool."

Mobile Unit Assistant Ron McFadden, whose job was to set up and tear down the mobile blood drive unit, has worked for the Red Cross for seven years.

Throughout the day, he also sorted blood samples, and prepared them to be sent to Portland for further screening. There, at the National Testing Lab, the blood is tested for HIV, all forms of hepatitis, and venereal diseases.

Phlebotomist Johnna Hess summed up her responsibilities said that "Sisters High students are the best of any high school we work with."

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She removed the needle from a student's arm and covered the tiny wound with a cotton ball and tape.

"They are courteous and cooperative, and really cheer each other on," she said. "You don't often see kids like that."

For information on donating blood, call the Red Cross office in Bend at 382-4630.

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