Second-year medical student Alec Wilson donates blood at the Upstate Donor Initiative drive in Setnor Academic Building Feb. 20. Photo by Yoni Kurland.
The student-led blood drive on the Upstate campus Feb. 20 exceeded organizers’ expectations, generating 56 units for the American Red Cross. Of those units, six were double red cell donations.
Student volunteers from our Donor Initiative and American Red Cross personnel spent more than five hours in the Setnor Academic Building for the drive.
“We were really happy to have such a strong showing of support from the Upstate student community, especially in light of recent shortages,” said organizer Yoni Kurland, a second-year medical student. “It’s great to see our classmates give of themselves for a worthy cause.”
Even better, the blood drives will continue – the next Donor Initiative event is scheduled for August. A group of first-year medical students led by Liza Cantor and John Kulesa will take over for the current leaders, who will soon begin their third-year clinical rotations.
The Donor Initiative is part of Upstate’s Center for Civic Engagement. Students who would like to get involved in the Donor Initiative should e-mail upstateblooddrive@gmail.com.