Blood Drive Is February 24—

Hawley Fourth Grader Asks Newtown

To Roll Up Its Sleeves

By Shannon Hicks

A person needs blood every three seconds. The different components of blood (red blood cells, platelets, and plasma) can be used separately depending on a patient’s need, which means that each single blood donation can help save up to three lives.

The Red Cross needs more than 450 blood donations each day to meet the needs of the 30 hospitals it supports in Connecticut alone. Unfortunately, only four percent of people in Connecticut donate blood on a regular basis.

Ian Wright knows all these facts and more about the importance of blood donations. The Hawley School fourth grader would like to help the American Red Cross, and while he is not old enough to donate blood himself, Ian is hoping adult friends and Newtown residents will step up later this month to donate some of theirs.

Ian is organizing a blood drive as part of a fourth grade community service project. The drive will be held in The Alexandria Room at Edmond Town Hall from 1:45 to 6:45 pm on Wednesday, February 24.

Students in Michael Wight’s social studies classes at Hawley School have been doing community service projects for a few weeks, deciding how they can help their community. Classmates, Ian said last week, have collected food for the dog pound, helped elderly residents with housekeeping and other chores, collected food for the local food pantries, and even collected clothing for The Dorothy Day House in Danbury.

For Ian, it was a suggestion from his father, Charles, that helped him decide what to do.

“My dad mentioned a blood drive and that really excited me,” said Ian, who knows that he may not be alive today were it not for the availability of donated blood a number of years ago.

Ian is the second child of Michelle and Charles Wright. When their firstborn, a daughter named Tess, was born, Michelle had complications during childbirth that led to the need for a life-saving transfusion.

“I might not be here if it wasn’t for blood donations,” Ian said. “It’s really important to me.”

While he may not be old enough yet, Ian has no hesitation when it comes to whether he will be a blood donor down the road.

“I don’t think it’s very hard to do,” he said. “Sometimes people don’t drink enough fluids and they get sick after they donate, but I don’t think it’s hard for you to do the right things before and after you donate blood.”

A reminder that anyone donating blood must be at least 17 years old, weigh at least 110 pounds, and be in generally good health.

As is traditional with American Red Cross blood drives, a canteen with soft drinks and light snacks will be set up during Ian’s blood drive at Edmond Town Hall.

Appointments can be made through the Red Cross or the Wrights, who are keeping in regular touch with the Red Cross to coordinate the appointments.

“We have about 15 appointments already,” Ian said last Thursday afternoon, “plus we got a few more appointments from people at my school today that we haven’t added to the calendar yet.”

In addition to Ian’s presentation to his classmates before the holidays, Red Cross representative Lynne Phillips also visited Hawley School and offered a PowerPoint presentation to Ian’s class. In one of her slides she reminded the students that nationally, the primary reason people indicate that they have not donated blood is they have not been asked.

Ian is asking.

Appointments can be made for the February 24 blood drive at Edmond Town Hall by calling the American Red Cross at 800-448-3543 or the Wrights at 203-270-3431.

Each presenting blood donor this month will also be eligible for a chance to win up to $200 in home heating costs. Weekly drawings are being held each week in February, with the winning funds paid directly to the utility provider.