Blood Donation
March 27, 2009
Praise the Lord for about 70 willing hearts and finally 56 successively give blood on our Blood Donation Day on 27 March 2009. This event has been one of the “”Salt and Light”” community service events that our Church organizes annually, and this year’s was the first to be held in our Tsuen Wan new venue.
By 4:30pm, the volunteers started coming in and upon completing the registration and filling of the medical history form, went through a private medical screening and a hemoglobin test. Each of them was served drinks and snacks to give their body a “”recharge”” before the actually blood donation.
Signs of nervousness were seen on the faces of first time donors, especially when the extraction needle was about to be inserted into their arm. Ultimately, charitable heart overcame nervousness and these 56 volunteers successfully donated blood in volumes of either 350ml or 450ml, depending on their body weight.
The first blood donation held in our new Church venue also brought refreshing experiences for the brothers and sisters, the bigger space offered more privacy and alleviated us of uneasiness that while lying down we might be knocked by people walking too close around us.
The bigger venue also offered opportunity for attracting walk ins to donate blood, as commented by the Red Cross that some donors were charitable persons who decided to give blood on impulse after seeing the Red Cross notice posted at the building’s entrance lobby.
For some brothers and sisters , the event also served as a chance for them to catch up with some old friends. Kenny, a former colleague of Pik Sai, was a first time donor and also a first time visitor to the Church. Kenny said he initially experienced nervousness but felt great after successfully donated blood in his first try. On the other hand, Billy(a friend of Tady) had donated blood many times in the past but the last was already 10 years ago. Billy was also a first time visitor to the Church and he said the venue was very comfortable and the set up no different to the actual Red Cross blood donation centers.
In fact, the time of year was a flu peak season but we thank God for every brother and sister that showed support and sacrificial heart in turning out for this event. It is truly a blessing that we can serve the Lord and serve the community together.
