Fifty-one students and faculty members attended a blood drive in the gym on Tuesday, March 18. The Science National Honor Society led the effort by hosting the American Red Cross from 8 a.m – 1 p.m.
Sofia Alarcon-Frias ’25 spearheaded the initiative as the official Student Sponsor, acting as the club’s liaison between Staples and the Red Cross. Students were able to come and donate during their free periods, or during class if necessary.
“I’ve been in contact with the Red Cross and I’ve been making sure we have all the mats [for donors] and all the advertising and everything,” Alarcon-Frias said.
To be eligible to donate, participants needed to be at least 16 years old, and meet the weight requirement for their height. Additionally, they could not have donated blood in the 56 days preceding the Staples donation date, according to the American Red Cross website.
The donor turnout included many students from AP Biology teacher Michele Morse-Gaudio’s class, such as Romy Gordon ’26.
“I don’t think I would’ve donated without encouragement from my teacher,” Gordon said. “But I’m really glad I did. I’m tracking it on my [American Red Cross] app and it already made it to a hospital in New York.”
Other students were motivated to donate because of their history participating in extracurricular activities.
“Well, blood is in a shortage, and I would hate to not be able to make a difference with even just one pint,” Damian Rousseau ’26 said. “I work in the medical field with the EMS Westport team, and I always see how much people need blood and the different dire situations people are in, so I wanted to help the cause.”
