School blood drive sets record

Newport Harbor students, others give 120 units to boost slacking supply in Southern California.NEWPORT BEACH -- It was the bloodiest day in the history of Newport Harbor High School -- and therefore a cause for celebration.

On Wednesday in the small gym, Newport Harbor’s Student Political Action Committee held its second blood drive of the school year to benefit the American Red Cross. By the end of the day, the event had set a campus record by amassing 120 units of blood from students, parents, administrators and others.

The high turnout came after a month of campaigning at Newport Harbor and an added push from the outside community. During the six hours that blood donors packed the gym, local restaurants provided a free Italian lunch, and others contributed coupons for a raffle in which all donors participated.

“It’s partially because it’s late in the year and more students are eligible,” said senior Harrison Brown, the event’s co-organizer, about the record number of units. “Also, we had individual invitations rather than group ones. We used to come to class and say, ‘Does anybody want to give?’ But this time, we sent letters home to each student.”

Harrison, 17, coordinated the event along with classmate Danielle Mayer, starting the drive an hour earlier than usual to allow more teachers and administrators to participate. Newport Harbor Principal Michael Vossen and school board member Linda Sneen were among those who arrived to roll up their sleeves.

In all, the Red Cross nurses on the scene drew 108 pints of blood, but 12 donors used a special machine -- known as the Alyx System -- that doubles the amount of red blood cells removed.

Residents must be 17 or older to donate blood. That limits the amount of student sign-ups at Newport Harbor’s drives. Club advisor Phil D’Agostino said the 170 student sign-ups this year were a record, even if the total still left room for improvement.

“If we could get 10% of the student population to give a pint of blood, we’d have 200 pints,” he said.

Nurses turned some of the visitors away due to medical reasons, but most ended up going through.

“For every three kids who come in, we get two pints,” D’Agostino explained.

The action committee trumpeted last October’s blood drive, which netted 81 pints, as a benefit for victims of Hurricane Katrina. Harrison and D’Agostino noted that a shortage of donated blood is a constant problem in Southern California.

“Regardless of natural disaster, we’re just going to push on,” Harrison said.

Stephen Whitburn, the communications manager for the Southern California Red Cross, said that the region’s lack of donations arose from a number of factors, and that events such as Newport Harbor’s helped fill a serious void.

“There are several high schools in Southern California that have really thrown themselves into producing successful blood drives, and Newport Harbor is one of them,” Whitburn said. “If we could get all the high schools to actively recruit blood donors the way Newport Harbor and others do, that would go a long way toward alleviating the chronic blood shortages we have in Southern California.”20060209iueaq2ncJAMIE FLANAGAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Newport Harbor High School senior Ashley Arroyo has her blood drawn in the school gym Wednesday. 20060209iueap4ncJAMIE FLANAGAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Newport-Mesa school board trustee Linda Sneen prepares to donate blood during a drive held at Newport Harbor High School.