Buffalo Senior High School will begin their Blood Drive, sponsored by the American Red Cross, on Friday, March 5.
Sign up to give blood will be held during lunch on Monday 2/22, Tuesday 2/23, and Wednesday 2/24. If you are interested in signing up to give blood, you must be 17 or older. The blood drive is open to staff also. If sign up spots are not filled by Wednesday, February 24, 16 year olds will then be able to give blood as long as they have parent permission.
The Red Cross has set up new requirements this year for high school students, because young donors are more likely to experience a reaction after giving whole blood than older donors. Most reactions are minor symptoms, such as dizziness or hotheadedness, but fainting and more serious injuries can occur. Younger donors are more likely to have a reaction if they have low blood volume. a persons blood volume depends on their gender, height and weight.the new policy is an effort to ensure that people who qualify for blood donation will lose only a relatively small amount of their total blood volume.
The basic weight requirement is that you have to weight 110 pounds or more to give blood. More specific requirements will be posted at the blood drive table, you can check to see if you make the requirements there. The school’s goal is to get 170 students to donate blood. The school will receive a corresponding amount of scholarship money for each donor.
By Delia Langland, Kailia Nelson, Francie Varner, and Alex Kramer
