UPTON — Superintendent Dr. Maureen Cohen and Nipmuc Regional High School Principals John Clements and Mary Anne Moran are proud to share that a successful blood drive was hosted on Friday, Dec. 13, by the school's Red Cross Club and the Nipmuc Funds 4 Cancer Club.
The blood was collected by staff from Boston Children's Hospital, which brought its blood donation clinic on the road, parking a 42-foot-long custom coach called the "Bloodmobile" just outside the school's athletic wing from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The fully booked volunteer event resulted in more than 30 people signing up to donate blood , with those donations now being used to provide vital and life-saving treatments for kids from Massachusetts and around the globe who come to Boston Children's Hospital for clinical and emergency care.
This was the first blood drive held at Nipmuc Regional High School since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020. Prior to the pandemic, Nipmuc Regional held annual blood drives.
School Nurse Leslie McInnis, who helped oversee the blood drive, credited the efforts of Eleni Guarneri and other student volunteers, along with their faculty advisors, for making the event a success. English teacher, Johanna Annunziata is the faculty advisor for the Nipmuc Funds 4 Cancer Club, and science teacher Cari White is the faculty advisor for the school's Red Cross Club.
"They all did such a great job in pulling this together and getting so many blood donors lined up for the mobile clinic," McInnis said. "The students did a lot of advertising, including during morning announcements, and they had a table set up to promote the blood drive in the cafeteria. The students took the lead. They were instrumental in making sure all time slots were filled, and donor beds were occupied. It was a huge success."
Several of those who donated blood during the event were students as young as 16 years old. All 16-year-olds required consent from a parent or legal guardian in order to participate, while students 17 years and older were able to decide to donate on their own.
"We had a lot of first-time donors," McInnis said. "Oftentimes, when people donate blood in high school for the first time, they become lifelong donors. That's part of why it's so important to host blood drives in high school. It really makes a difference."
In conjunction with the blood drive, volunteer students and their teacher advisors also organized a toy drive to benefit Boston Children's Hospital and the Jimmy Fund Clinic, with an online component through Amazon that generated around 40 gift donations. An in-person collection that took place during the blood drive drew 53 donated presents for patients at the hospital. Anyone who donated a toy during the blood drive was entered into a door prize raffle that was graciously donated by the Worcester Railers. The toys were donated to patients battling pediatric cancer and other childhood diseases.
The inspiration behind the Nipmuc Funds 4 Cancer Club that hosts events at school like the toy drive, the Winter Wonderland Fundraiser hosted this past weekend raising over $1,500, and a food drive done in November, are all for nonprofits that help those impacted by cancer in honor of Annunziata's 6-year-old niece, Ava. Ava remains in outpatient treatment for leukemia through the Jimmy Fund. Her family and friends separately raised $217,000 to help support the hospital's groundbreaking research through The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
"December historically is a good time to host a blood drive," McInnis said. "People are feeling in the spirit of the holidays and wanting to give back."
Superintendent Dr. Cohen thanked all the blood donors who stepped up, along with all students and faculty who helped organize the event, describing the Nipmuc Regional High School blood drive as a perfect example of community service.
"I am incredibly proud of our students for their generous volunteer efforts to provide this vital resource that will go on to help people in their time of need," Superintendent Dr. Cohen said. "Everyday blood donations like these go on to help accident victims, people undergoing surgery, and those who are battling cancer. Kudos to our students and our staff, including School Nurse Leslie McInnis and our faculty advisors, Johanna Annunziata, and Cari White, for making this event into such a successful example of student volunteerism."
