Number 15

I have always felt that, being a very fortunate and blessed person, I should contribute and give back as much to society as possible (especially because of where I come from and the wonderful opportunities I have been afforded by having a "comfortable" life.) In high school I had tons of opportunities to give back: Hands on Atlanta, Mentoring, volunteering at the Breast Cancer 3-Day, Soup Kitchens with my Bible Study group, mission trips both local and international and the list goes on. I feel like it was much easier to contribute because I had much more time and a little more money.

I first donated blood my senior year of high school with my friend Laura. The drive was sponsored at our church. I found that it was a simple process and that it did not take a long time (the only drawback was not being able to workout for the next 12-24 hours.) I gave once more that year (one of my two 'bad' experiences... the lesson I learned is that Frosted Flakes is not a sufficient meal before donating.) When I got to Tech, I found all of my time (and money) consumed by school. I didn't even have time to think of places to volunteer or help out. Then, September 11 happened. MOVE shuttled donors to the Red Cross on Monroe Drive. I decided to go, since it was a simple process for me (this proved to be my second 'bad' experience... let's just say the guy missed.)

Since then I have been donating regularly. Today marked my 15th donation. The woman who took my blood pressure was excited... next time I get my 2 gallons pin! :-p

It's definitely not for everyone. I know people who always have a difficult time and get sick from donating. But for me, I always feel fine and fill the baggie within 10 minutes (that's a bad thing, right? being able to bleed so quickly... :-p) I'm glad I've found a great way to contribute that also is pretty simple and not very time consuming.

And it always makes the AE steps seem that much steeper...