Making an (O) positive impact

Liberty students make A+ blood donations at LaHaye, remembering to B positive

“I like to tell people: ‘blood doesn’t grow on trees,’” blood drive coordinator Wensday Tumalak said when asked about the importance of donating blood. Having worked for Virginia Blood Services (VBS) for almost three and a half years, this topic is one that hits home for her.

Tumulak explained she never donated blood until getting a job in this field, and she credits it all to her brother-in-law, Charles, whose faithful dedication to donating blood opened her eyes to the importance of giving back.

“Charles was an avid blood donor,” Tumulak explained, and with tear-filled eyes told of how an accidental fall during an obstacle course race left him paralyzed. “Seeing him live as a quadriplegic has helped me appreciate the small stuff, and it’s because of him that I got this job.”

Charles proactively donated blood before his accident.

In honor of him, Tumulak has worked to raise awareness of the importance and impact this small act can have.

“A lot of people use the excuse that they don’t have time, but in reality we do — it only takes forty-five minutes to an hour of your day,” Tumulak said. “Each donation helps three people as one pint of blood is divided into the platelets, plasma and red
(blood) cells.”

According to Tumulak, cancer patients are the number one recipients of their products.

GIVE — Blood donations were taken in the LaHaye Event Space on multiple days. Photo credit: Cristianne Gormley

GIVE — Blood donations were taken in the LaHaye Event Space on multiple days. Photo credit: Cristianne Gormley

She feels that if more people understood where their blood was going, they might be more apt to donate.

Other common recipients of blood donations include premature babies in need of blood transfusions and mothers who have just delivered, since they lose a lot of blood in the process.

Tumulak said that blood used for car accidents and gun wounds are “few and far between.”

The reality lies in that most people do not understand the importance behind donating blood.

“The only way people in the hospital will get the products they need is if people selflessly give their time,” Tumulak said. “It won’t cost you anything, but you can give your time and invest in a life.”

Donating is a simple three-step process consisting of registration, screening, and donating.

Of these three, the actual donation takes no more than five to 10 minutes.

The FDA has regulated that needles cannot be left inside of someone for more than 15 minutes.

Tumulak provided two common reasons why people do not donate blood.

“Either because no one has asked them to or they are afraid of needles,” Tumulak said.

Liberty University sponsors one blood drive every eight weeks, and holds them most often in the LaHaye Event Space located in Green Hall.

The university partners with both the Red Cross and Virginia Blood Services.

Some of Liberty’s professors raise awareness in the student body by offering extra credit for general classes like Biblical Worldview or Evangelism 101 to get students to participate in the blood drives.

Tumalak stated that 30 percent of the donor base for Virginia Blood Services are high school and college students.

Tumulak pointed out that when Liberty holds a drive where students receive extra credit, the turnout is much bigger.

Far fewer students show up to an event if extra credit is not offered.

Junior Abbie Suttle has personally seen both the benefits and importance of receiving blood and organ donations through the life of her older sister, Erin.

Erin was born with Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis, an autoimmune disease.

She lived only a month and half shy of her fourth birthday. But, those years of life came about only thanks to a much-needed organ donation.

Though Erin died before Suttle was born, she knows how much those extra years of her sister’s life blessed her parents, and as a way of returning the favor to others, she donates blood.

“I try to donate where I can,” Suttle said. “I’m not the … most rare (blood type), but I’ll give when I can.”

Since her freshman year, Suttle has not missed a single blood drive offered at Liberty.

“Everyone gets scared and freaks out about how they will feel after,” Suttle said. “Just drink water, eat food and get decent sleep — if you have those three things you’ll be okay.”

PALUMBO is a feature reporter.

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