On Wednesday, May 11, a blood drive was held in the Community High School media center. The media center was transformed into a blood donation center. Both students and the public showed up to donate and help save lives.

According the the Red Cross, only 38% of Americans are eligible to donate blood. Of the worthy donors, only eight percent actually donate. That amounts to only about three out of every 100 people. The Red Cross holds more than 200,000 blood drives per year.

One of these 200,000 blood drives was organized by a CHS senior named Chelsea Cendrowski. She has had previous experience at the Red Cross by volunteering at the donor  center. “I was talking to the nurses one day, and they were asking me about where I go to school. I said I go to Community and they said, “we haven’t had a blood drive there in a while”. I decided to start doing one,” said Cendrowski.

The initial idea was created in November of 2010, but the process of getting it started

and advertising pushed the date to May 11th, 2011.

The goal for the blood drive was 31 people but all 49 available time slots were filled with anxious patients. Although some people were deferred from donating because they did not meet the requirements, there were always walk-ins to fill the open time slots.

Each person gives approximately one pint of blood; about one-tenth of blood in a human body.

The majority of donors were CHS students and parents, but a few people from the local area were also in attendance.

Cendrowski hopes that the blood drive can continue each year with help from her forum.

For both the public and Cendrowski, the CHS blood drive was a success. The donations will go long way for people in need of healthy blood.