Undoubtedly there are a lot of causes to be backing right now. However, often times there is no level of involvement other than a social media endorsement. If we are lucky, there is a club that we can join/start on our campus or local community to get more involved. However, we do not typically have a ton of money to donate or the resources we need to make a huge difference. Does this mean that we should stop supporting these causes? Absolutely not, because educating others is often the biggest impact you can make in support of a cause.
However, what if I told you that there is something you can do that will not only help multiple life-changing causes? Oh that's right, you already know what it is, it's kinda the title and cover photo of this article. So yeah, basically donating blood is a really important thing to be doing if you are able, but it is so much deeper than that. So, allow me to give just a few reasons why you should be donating blood, from the most superficial, somewhat selfish reasons even, to the most important reason and a bunch of cool facts about donating blood.
1. Free snacks and drinks
When you donate blood, you get access to all the Cheez-Its, Chips Ahoy, Fruit-snacks, and juices/water that you could ever want.
2. Sometimes the Red Cross gives shirts and gift cards when you donate!
Who doesn't love prizes?
3. You get to figure out your blood type if you don't already know.
Could you have the most rare blood type (AB-)? Could you be a universal donor (O-)? Who know?!?!? I mean... maybe you do, but if you don't then you will find out after donating blood!
4. If you give platelets you can watch that movie you've been meaning to watch forever.
Donating platelets can take a while, but a lot of people need them really bad. Especially cancer patients who need them for treatment. However, not a lot of people give them because of the time commitment. Fear not though, if you have the time to donate platelets but are afraid of getting bored, the Red Cross has a solution. They stick a screen in front of your face and you can watch whatever movie you have available on DVD. They also typically have a library of their own in the drive location.
5. You meet a lot of cool people that work the drive consistently.
I just think any opportunity to meet cool people with cool stories is a win, and when somebody is prepping your arm for a needle, there are a lot of stories told to fill the gaps of silence as somebody scrubs your arm. Military stories, college stories, you name it. It is personally one of the most entertain parts for me
6. It'll make you feel accomplished
You can always leave a blood donation knowing you've done a great thing because...
7. You can literally save a life.
The main reason you should want to give blood, quite frankly, is that you can save lives. This isn't a cause where you need to worry about how much of your money is going into rich pockets, because giving blood is free, and nobody wants your blood in their pockets. Your donation will go to people suffering from cancer, infants sometimes. People who have suffered nearly fatal accidents, people with diseases of the blood, and anybody who might need a blood transfusion. What it comes down to is that lives will be changed, even saved because of your donation. Someday it might be you or a loved one who needs a donation, so for that very reason, I hope you now understand just why if you CAN give blood, you NEED to be doing it. I will leave some links as to how you can start as soon as today!
Find a drive: https://www.redcrossblood.org/give.html/find-drive
Can you donate?: https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/how-to-donate/eligibility-requirements.html
Different types of donations: https://www.redcrossblood.org/donate-blood/how-to-donate/types-of-blood-donations.html
