Habitat for Humanity Riverside and the Riverside ReStore partnered with the American Red Cross in
2014 to hold 3 blood drives. At these drives, a total of 45 pints of blood were donated saving 135 lives!
Over the past 3 blood drives, several Habitat staff and volunteers, ReStore customers, and community
members gave up their time to donate. Habitat Riverside AmeriCorps member, Hazen Buckley had a
particularly wonderful experience with the American Red Cross staff at our last drive. She noted
“The first time I tried donating blood, things just didn’t work out for me. Even though I drank a
ton of water just before the donation, my vein decided to be cantankerous and not give a whole
lot. Before I knew it, the vein had blown and the needle had decided to poke through the other
side. I ended up with giant bruise and a sore ego; as much as I wanted to donate, the small
amount I had managed to produce was unceremoniously discarded. After that, I was a little
hard-pressed to be brave enough to go back to try donating blood again. Then, I found a
donation date online with the Red Cross scheduled at Habitat for Humanity. It had been six
months and I had done all the research I could to make sure I was still eligible to donate.
Knowing that during this time of the year the blood supply is low, I decided to try again.
I am so grateful I did. I approached the Red Cross team a couple of hours before my donation
appointment to tell them what had happened my very first time. They immediately made me
feel comfortable, offering me bottles of water and setting me up with a small schedule of when
to drink. The Red Cross representatives also made sure to let me know their phlebotomists were
very experienced.
When the time came for the needle poke, everyone was extremely courteous and I knew I was
going to be well taken care of. Tanya, the phlebotomist who got me set up, was professional and
knowledgeable. I asked her so many questions; her patience and understanding really put me at
ease. The donation went by pretty quickly, though Tanya still kept me completely comfortable
by telling me how many units I was at and how many I had left to go.
The entire experience was pretty amazing compared to my first try. Because of the Red Cross
crew at Habitat Riverside that day, I know I will be a repeat donor and continue to join in their
cause of saving lives. Thank you, Red Cross!”
Hazen was not the only Habitat member that was touched by giving blood. ReStore volunteer Van was
so committed to the cause that despite going through a family emergency on the day of our December
drive, he still choose to give. Van was working in the ReStore when he received a call informing him that
his sister had a medical emergency and was in the hospital. After visiting his sister that day, Van came
back to the ReStore to donate blood. He noted “I gave to give back to help someone who may be in an
even harder situation”.
Thank you everyone who came out and participated in our blood drives this last year! Be on the lookout
for future blood drive dates and more opportunities to save lives and serve our community at the
Riverside ReStore in our upcoming emails and blog posts.