IU, Purdue compete in blood drive

Students, faculty and alumni are continuing the competition between IU and Purdue University by going head to head for the next six weeks in the eighth annual Blood Donor Challenge.\nThe sponsors of the blood drive are the IU Alumni Association, Purdue Alumni Association, Indiana Blood Center and American Red Cross. \nStudents who wish to donate one pint of blood on campus may do so at various locations in residence halls and food courts. Along with statewide Indiana Blood Centers, the American Red Cross in Bloomington, located at 1600 W. Third St., also accepts donations for the competition. \nThe winner of the friendly competition will be honored at the traditional Old Oaken Bucket football game at Purdue on Nov. 20. Purdue has won five of the seven competitions so far, clenching last year's victory by only 21 units of blood. Together, the two schools donated a record 5,021 units of blood last year.\nSenior D'Andre May, president of the Student Alumni Association, said the SAA partners with the IUAA during this competition to inform students more about the event.\n"We really want students to be aware of why it's important to donate blood, how they can go about donating blood and how often they can donate blood," May said.\nThough the competition is fun, the real winners are the lives saved from the donations, said Kellie Cox, director of Alumni Clubs at Purdue.\n"Our goal this year is to have at least one pint more than IU," Cox said. "But the best thing about it is, we're saving a life by this competition. We can still put the IU and Purdue competitive twist on it, but the truth is, we're making a difference in our state."\nDon Creek, representative of donor recruitment at the American Red Cross in Bloomington, said the Red Cross appreciates competitions like this because of the continuous need for blood donations.\n"As an aging population, the need for blood is growing," Creek said. "As medical researchers and doctors are able to save lives, more lives will need more blood."\nCreek said each pint donated is separated into red cells, platelets and plasma, which can help save three different lives. Each of these divisions can help different problems such as injuries in accidents, liver transplants, bone marrow transplants, burn victims and open-heart surgeries.\nCreek said he recommends donors eat well within the few days before donating, which can avoid deferral for iron deficiency, the main reason college students might be turned away.\nStudents who donate for the competition will receive a T-shirt from the Red Cross.\nCreek said IU's blood donation relationship with the Red Cross is invaluable.\n"IU is extremely important to us throughout the entire year," Creek said. "There's a lot of untapped potential there, though. We want to build a stronger relationship with IU."\nCreek said he encourages anyone to give blood for the competition, no matter which team wins the competition.\n"A pint's a pint," Creek said. "And it touches three lives." \nFor more information about the Blood Donor Challenge, visit the IUAA Web site at www.alumni.indiana.edu.\n-- Contact staff writer Lori Snow at losnow@indiana.edu.