Joliet Catholic Academy’s Student Council hosted a Blood Drive at the school on Thursday, Jan. 22.  Over 120 students, faculty, and staff donated nearly 100 units of blood.

“January is National Blood Donation Month, and it was great to see so many of our students step up to help those in need,” said Deb Witmer, Student Council Moderator.

Donating blood is a highly meaningful way to volunteer in the community, and because the blood is separated into components, each donation can save as many as three lives. JCA Student Council moderator, Suzi Arnett, said, “The units collected at JCA will help to save almost 300 lives!”

The donation process, which includes registration, a mini-physical and the donation, takes approximately 45 minutes. To give blood donors must be at least 17 years old, in good health and weigh at least 110 pounds. In Illinois and Indiana, 16-year-olds are eligible provided they have written approval from parent/guardian. A valid form of identification must be presented when appearing to donate blood.

Heartland Blood Centers is an independent not-for-profit blood center serving 59 hospitals in a 12 county area including Kane, McHenry, DeKalb, Will, DuPage, Cook, Grundy, Kendall, Lee, Ogle and LaSalle counties in Illinois, and Lake county in Indiana. They operate under a volunteer donor system and work toward collecting more than 200,000 units of blood annually.

For more information on Heartland Blood Centers visit www.heartlandbc.org.