The CragBaby

Why not stop by Utah Blood and give some blood or platelets?

As many of you readers know, I am an active platelet donor when at home and particularly love Utah Blood as all donations are used at the local hospitals.  According to one of their latest blog posts, the holidays are their slowest time for donations.  Why not swing in and give someone the gift of life?  You can drop-in, but it is best to make an appointment by calling 801-584-5272.

I strive to volunteer on a weekly basis but am looking for some new volunteer opportunities. The places with which I currently affiliate my time include:

ARUP – I like to donate platelets on a bi-weekly basis, albeit I feel well. This is my favorite volunteer service because by sitting and watching a movie, I can directly impact a life. I choose to donate through ARUP because all donations are used at the local hospitals and very rarely do they receive enough donations to fulfill demand.

Climbing – During the summer I like to donate a climbing day a week to taking out climbing newbies. I do this because I used to be one of those newbies who couldn’t find a partner. And it sucks. By taking them out I can still have a beautiful day in the outdoors, teach proper safety techniques (keeping the climbing community safe) and allow someone else to enjoy the sport I love.

KCPW – I volunteer often during the KCPW pledge drives. KCPW is Salt Lake’s independent national public radio station (that barely escaped from being turned into a Christin station. Thank you again KCPW board members). I really love the programming, the KCPW crew and the point that they brought the BBC to its own frequency so that listeners could have BBC news 24/7. This volunteer opportunity is only on a semi-annual basis.

Ten Thousand Villages – I used to volunteer weekly with Ten Thousand Villages but have now put this on the back burner. I still really like the organization, but didn’t feel completely needed when I was there. I felt as if I didn’t show, the job would still get done… so why not spend my time elsewhere?

I have also looked into working with the Literacy Center of Utah, but have not started on with them as I just think the time commitment is too much for me to take on right now. I have also looked into NAMI (the National Alliance of Mental Illness). I was so jazzed when I found NAMI because I feel like mental illness is a prevalent disease that many people do not understand and I was hoping I could help with social awareness. I was so psyched for their cause I offered a year of my time, but they just didn’t know what to do with me. Thought their cause is good, at the time that I talked with them they seemed to still figure out how to operate, so I stepped away.

I would love to hear where you readers affiliate your volunteer time and why. I am looking for something that I love as much as platelet donation. Some form of service that is really needed and appreciated.

I just noticed that Utahblood.org has a new website and it is REAL cool!

• They have added a new logo which is a fantastic representation of who they are and what they do
• On the homepage they list the current needs for whole blood and platelets, plus the current blood drives
• There is now a Weekly Patient List link page that breaks down what type of blood and how many units are used weekly
• They have started a punch card where you get a punch every time you donate, that can be turned in for schwag with their logo. Plus they have giveaways to incentivize people to come in and donate
• They have a Blood Blog that will let donors know who they are helping, while still protecting the privacy of the patient.

What a fantastic site! Check it out!

I strive to volunteer once per week and lately have been searching for new volunteer opportunities that are more serious in nature and have stronger impacts. My latest find, which I have blogged about a little in the past, is donating platelets at ARUP. I really like this opportunity because the ARUP donations are used locally and current demand in certain blood types, one of which is mine, outweighs supply.

So far I have only been able to donate platelets once because in order to give one has to be perfectly healthy, and lately I seem to continually have a cold. However, I have an appointment again next week and am stoking up on the vitamin C in preparation.

Platelet donation is an odd volunteer experience in comparison to what I usually do because for an hour and a half there is a needle in my arm and I do experience some side effects during the process (being chilled from the blood re-entering at a cooler degree in comparison to the body and having my lips tingle from what I believe they said was a loss of calcium). But just knowing that a local person is using my platelets to continue living is an awesome feeling. Plus, what other volunteer experience requires you to sit, eat snacks and watch a movie. =)