When I was 10 years old, I found out just how important it is for healthy people to give blood every chance they get.  My grandpa, one of two grandparents still alive when I was born, went into the hospital in August.  Eight months later, he died. While he was in the hospital, we lost count of how many blood transfusions he was given. Although none of the transfusions saved his life, they always provided hope.

According to the American Red Cross, there is a 97 percent chance someone you know will need a blood transfusion. The American Red Cross estimates 15 percent of all blood donors in the United States are high school or college students.

While I was in high school, my school had a blood drive twice a year. When I was 17, I found I could give blood if I had a parent signature on a permission form. My parents had a long conversation with me before either of them would sign the paper. In the end, I was able to convince them because I wanted to know I might have saved somebody’s life.

In fact, according to the American Red Cross, the number one reason why people give blood is because they want to help others. However, the second most common excuse people make for not giving blood is they never thought about it and don’t like needles.

After I gave blood for the first time, I’ve given blood every chance I get. However, I don’t get the chance as often as I would like.  According to the American Red Cross, if you give blood starting at age 17 and donate every 56 days until you reach 76, you would have donated 48 gallons of blood – that’s enough blood to potentially save more than 1,000 lives.

According to the American Red Cross, someone in the United States needs blood every two seconds. More than 38,000 blood donations are needed every day.  Without going through the math, that’s a pretty good chance someone in your family will need a blood transfusion sometime in their life.

According to the N.C . State blood drive website, the number of pints collected at the University has dropped by 44 percent since 2002.

The University hosts a variety of blood drives on campus. There are times the American Red Cross is in need of blood and N.C . State will ask to host a blood drive on campus. The next blood drive is Monday, Nov. 7, 2011 from 3 p.m . to 7:30 p.m .

According to the American Red Cross, less than 38 percent of the U.S . population is eligible to give blood. Those of us who are eligible to give blood should. If everyone who was eligible would donate, there would be no dire need for blood we often see after natural disasters.

Donating blood is quite simple. The entire process generally takes about an hour. The registration and mini-physical are short. The mini-physical checks your blood pressure, temperature, pulse and iron level. This is a time when all donors are asked to answer a series of questions that help determine your eligibility to give blood. Questions range from the types of medication you take to what types of illnesses you’ve had.

After that, giving the blood doesn’t take long, followed directly by a short stay in the refreshment area. They generally have cookies, chips, and drinks for donors. It’s really important that donors stay for the refreshment, or they run the risk of collapsing from the loss of blood.