OneBlood is holding several blood drives at UCF this month. A single blood donation could save up to three lives.
Federico, a UCF student, has donated blood as often as possible for the past two years. He said giving blood doesn’t hurt all.
“I like to help other people; that’s why I do it,” Federico explained.
Pat Michaels is the director of media and relations at OneBlood. He said the time to donate blood is now, not later, because every two seconds, someone needs blood.
“By the time you have a tragedy like 9/11 or the Pulse Nightclub shooting, it’s too late. The people who donated before the tragedy happened are the ones whose blood went to the victims to help them,” Michaels said.
“About 20 percent of the donations to OneBlood come from high school students, colleges, and universities, so this Big Red Bus being here is very important,” Michaels said.
Leslie, a Waterford Lakes resident, said her mom needed a lot of blood transfusions. She started donating blood after her mom passed away.
“It’s really selfless; it’s not doing anything but taking 30 minutes of my day, so why not?” Leslie said.
Blood is used within three to four days, and donors can track their blood and see what time this happens, Michaels said.
“If you think it’s not making a difference, it really is,” he said.
The next blood drive will be held on Sept. 13 at Memory Mall, from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Anyone can donate, not just UCF students. Appointments are not required.
For more information go to events.ucf.edu or oneblood.org.
