The time has come for me to write out my CAS project! I’m well aware that there are still some CAS-related activities remaining (including some more blogs and my eventual presentation), but it is still exciting that we’re all at this point so close to the end of the program.
For my CAS project, I decided to work with HOSA to hold a school blood drive.
I have been a member of my school’s HOSA chapter since I was a freshman, and as such, I have always been very involved in the club. I became an officer my sophomore year, and have regained my role as a senior.
This year I’ve really wanted to step up my game with the club. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we weren’t able to have nearly as many club activities last year as we usually have. I prepared a folder with some of the necessary documents within a club space and scheduled some meetings with my fellow officers. We talked through possible activities and the idea of a blood drive came up.
We used to hold two blood drives within a school year through HOSA, but it had been forever since we had one. After settling on the idea of a blood drive we worked with our advisor to get the plan rolling. We reached out to the American Red Cross and scheduled date in October.
After the date was down I decided I needed to spread the word. I made various presentations which I presented to my club, not only to get donors but to also get volunteers to help work at the actual blood drive. I also reached out to the advisors of other clubs, such as our school’s chapter of the National Honors Society, to spread the word within their own clubs (proposing the idea that donating would be equivalent to service hours). Eventually, I found enough people to work at the blood drive and also had every donation appointment filled.
While we usually hold our blood drives in the school cafeteria, this year we held them in the culinary arts cafe. We hoped that through this donors could easily park near the door and find their way inside, as we usually have to have students at the front of the building to guide the donors to where the cafeteria is.
The day of the blood drive finally arrived and I was very nervous as well as excited. We moved all of the furniture out of the culinary cafe so the American Red Cross could set up their equipment and waited for donors to arrive. Different members helped inside the cafe, held signs along the road to direct cars, and also helped register donors as they arrived. I helped throughout the night, and eventually took my turn at donating (which was super scary, but also important considering the current blood shortage!).
The American Red Cross was packed up and gone by 10 PM, along with a majority of the volunteers. I helped my advisor put all of the furniture back in its original spot in the culinary cafe and went home to get some rest!
Now, we’re planning a spring blood drive as a club.
The process of arranging the blood drive was certainly stressful, as I really wanted it to go well, but it was also rewarding. I used my creativity to find ways to promote the blood drive and to organize everything. The blood drive in itself was an activity that required lots of physical labor to go well. Finally, through promoting blood donations, especially in the time of a shortage amongst a pandemic, we promoted service. I had to work with lots of people, including my fellow officers, my advisors, other school officials, and the American Red Cross, but the end result was one that will stay in my memory.
Due to being busy in the moment, I didn’t take any pictures at the blood drive, but I’ll be sure to take some at the spring drive and update this post!
The Cons of Writing 