Students had the opportunity to save lives Tuesday and Wednesday as part of the Angels for Life Blood Drive "Live to Give" Life-Saving Day of Service.
This year's drive was different because students not only had the opportunity to save lives by giving blood, but also by registering to become bone marrow and organ donors.
Senior visual communications major Megan Manlove said she donates blood because her blood type is one that everyone can take.
"After the first time I gave blood, I got a thank you letter from a 7-year-old, so I've donated about seven or eight times since then," Manlove said.
Lisa Kaufman, Chair of the Angels for Life committee on staff council, said they had 120 appointments, but expected around 140 people including walk-ins.
Angels for Life hosts drives every semester, spread out 56 days apart, which is how often one can donate blood.
The organization teamed up with the Indiana Blood Center, which provides blood for the 65 hospitals in Indiana and this year they also invited the Indiana Organ Procurement Organization and Be the Match to get involved in the drive.
"Give for someone that you know, a family member or a friend, or just give for the reason of giving because you're saving lives," Kaufman said.
Biology graduate student Austin Brooks volunteered with Be the Match at the event to promote bone marrow donation.
"It's a really good organization in order to help people, and it's not very evasive," Brooks said. "It's like giving blood."
Bone marrow transplants are needed for people with cancer who are going through chemotherapy, like those suffering from leukemia in order to repopulate red and white blood cells, Brooks said.
Kim Charles, Community Relations Coordinator for Indiana Organ Procurement Organization, said the reason some people are skeptical of organ donation is the false information they are receiving from others.
"Some people think 'I've heard that if they find me in a car accident they aren't going to work to save my life,' and that isn't true," Davis said.
Junior child life specialist major Jessica Hoffman volunteers with the Indiana Organ Procurement Organization, and she said her involvement comes from a personal experience with organ donation.
Hoffman's sister, Amber, died in a car accident five years ago after a Homecoming game. She was pronounced brain dead at the scene of the accident and was lifelined to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis.
Hoffman said just before the accident her sister and mother had discussed organ donation, and Amber made the decision to be a donor when she renewed her driver's license.
"They did everything they could to save her," Hoffman said. "Immediately the doctors talked to my family about whether she was an organ donor."
Amber was able to save six people's lives with just five of her organs.
One of the recipients was a baby named Riley, who was on the liver transplant list since the day he was born. The small lobe of Amber's liver saved the little boy who is now 5 years old and healthy.
"If you honestly had the chance to save someone's life then why wouldn't you?" Hoffman said.
The woman who received Amber's heart died one year after the transplant, but Hoffman said her family still believes it was worth it.
Hoffman's family is honoring the fifth anniversary of Amber's death by inviting all of the recipients of her organs whose lives were saved as a result of Amber's decision to be a donor.
In 2011, 496 people received organ transplants from 145 donors in Indiana, according to the Indiana Organ Procurement Organization fact sheet.
"An organ donor can save up to eight individuals' lives and with tissue donation you can enhance over 50 people's lives," Davis said.
"It effects everybody, whether they think it does or not," Hoffman said. "You can donate blood a million times in your life, but how many times can you donate an organ?" Hoffman said.
Hoffman said she donates blood as much as she can and admits that before her sister's death she was skeptical of blood and organ donation.
"I don't think anyone truly understands until it hits home, because I never understood what organ donation was until it hit home for me," Hoffman said.
There are 26 patients in Delaware County waiting on organ transplants and 304 patients in Marion County awaiting transplants, according to the IOPO fact sheet.
"We all have our fears, but I think sometimes we have to sacrifice our fears in order to help others," Hoffman said.
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