On Thursday, Nov. 8, the Community Blood Center of the Carolinas came to Guilford College to set up a mobile blood drive. Beginning at 12:00 p.m. and ending at 3:30 p.m., the drive collected blood for patients and hospitals throughout the Greensboro community. The CBCC is a local center and is the main supplier of blood to this region’s hospitals.

“Donating blood is very important because those who cannot produce blood cells by themselves or those who are very sick, such as cancer patients and things of that type, who are in need,” said Donor Services Mobile Team Supervisor Jessica Whipple. “Also, giving back to the community is important. You never know what may happen to you one day. That’s really important for me and is why I’m doing this job.”

Whipple also stressed how important it is for everyone to give blood if they can as a form of giving back to the community.

“I really do think that everybody should give blood,” Whipple said. “You can give blood every eight weeks so why not help your community out? Especially because you never know if you’ll be in need one day.”

Many donors expressed the sentiment that giving blood is an impactful way to give back to their own community. Recent natural disasters, such as Hurricanes Michael and Florence, caused am imcrease in sustained injuries that require blood donations.

“There are lots of people who are in desperate need of blood,” Greensboro resident Anya Donald said. “Thanks to donors, we have blood banks to serve people who have accidents and victims of tragedy such as hurricanes and floods. We have blood ready for people who go through disasters such as that.”

There are a few circumstances that could prevent someone from giving blood, such as using blood thinner medications or having a bacterial or being below the minimum weight requirement. Before you are able to donate blood, you will be asked a set of preliminary questions to ensure that you are eligible.

“Most people who need blood are already sick so if you’re sick you don’t want to be giving blood. There are a whole slew of reasons why someone shouldn’t give blood but that is the most basic,” Greensboro resident Abigail Ayers said.

Ayers also discussed the reasoning behind blood drives and why they are so prevalent all across the country.

“Blood is the only medicinal product that can’t be made,” Ayers said. “It has to be donated because we can’t make it anywhere else.”

All types of blood are accepted at blood drives and you don’t even need to know your blood type to donate. However, the universal donor, O-, has the highest demand. This blood type is the only blood type that can be used to treat almost any patient in need. Unfortunately, this blood type is not often seen as it is only present in an estimated 6.6 percent of the world’s population.

“We are mainly looking for people with O-, B-, O+ and A- blood types,” Whipple said. “We are also in need of plasma and red blood cells.”

If you wish to help the community by donating blood, you can learn more by visiting http://www.cbcc.us/donate-blood. Patients will never stop needing blood and donors play a very important role in keeping them alive and allowing them to one day get back to their lives.