Los Medanos College held its Fall 2017 Blood Drive on Sept. 20 The blood drive was run out of a mobile donation center from Blood Centers of the Pacific, a non-profit organization that delivers blood to over 40 hospitals in the Bay Area and northern California.

Students from across LMC gathered at the “Bloodmobile” outside of the library to schedule donation times, register their blood type, and of course, donate blood.

Long time donator Eric Perez offered some insight into the effects of the process, and encouraged others to donate as well.

“It’s a good thing,” he said, adding “It’s exhausting when you first do it. I’ve been doing it since ’07. I took a break, so this is my first time donating in two years.”

However, not all donators are veterans like Perez. Student Armani Smith, a first time donator, pushed through some of his apprehensions to donate blood and discovered that it was not as bad as he thought it would be. “It was relaxing,” he explained.

As an encouragement to those nervous about the process, Smith said, “They gave you a complete understanding…they gave you the option to leave.”

Smith noted that the most important part for him was the satisfaction that came with donating.

“Saving someone else’s life and knowing that you did that is a blessing,” he said, adding that he would definitely be donating again.

Of course, students also donated for a variety of other reasons. For student Serena Neal, the experience of donating blood is what drew her in.

“I’d never donated blood before,” she commented. “I wanted to see what it was like.”       Neal recommends that others donate as well so that they can further research and help those in need.

If you’d like to learn more about Blood Centers of the Pacific, you can learn more at http://www.bloodcenters.org.