As I lay there “bleeding” nonstop for ten minutes, all I could think was, “Wow! I am doing something great!” I had donated blood twice last school year and decided to do it again this semester. On Tuesday, Oct. 26, and Wednesday, Oct. 27, the American Red Cross showed up at Alumni Hall at Quinnipiac University. Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity and Community Action Project, a community service organization hosted this life saving event.

I was the last person to donate at Quinnipiac’s “blood drive.” The woman at the check in desk almost turned me away, due to the large turnout that day and the day before. They almost didn’t need my blood!

Before they stuck the needle in me there was a series of questions that the nurse had to ask in order to make sure that my blood would likely be safe and usable. These questions concerned my health, sexual history, drug use, and where I have traveled in the past year.

Something interesting that the Red Cross does is make sure that you really want to donate your blood. The last step before I went on the bed was to pick a sticker out of two and place one on one paper and one on the other. One sticker choices were “use my blood” or “don’t use my blood.” I had asked my nurse why they do this. Ursula, a member of the American Red Cross team said, “Some people are embarrassed about a reason why they can’t give blood and don’t want to tell their friends. This method gives them a chance to hide whatever secrets they may have.”

The next step may be somewhat scary, the needle. I’m a bit intimidated by the thought of someone piercing my skin. During the whole process one thing that kept me from leaving was the fact that I knew I would help save three people’s lives.

“Breathe in and out three times, close your eyes and it’s over,” I said to myself, and it was. Yes, it hurt a little, yes, I got dizzy, but I’ll live, and now three other people can too.