Blood drive produces 38 units
BY BARI FAYE SIEGEL Correspondent

HOWELL - For the third year in a row, Bernadette Mastowski, the nurse at the Land O' Pines School, and all of her "helper" students enjoyed great success at their annual blood drive- an effort to collect desperately needed blood for New Jersey Blood Services.

A total of 38 units of blood were collected at the blood drive last week. New Jersey Blood Services offered free cholesterol screenings to each donor as well as two free tickets to the Bronx Zoo and a Tshirt in exchange for one unit of blood.

Plus, as promised by the organization, a donation of $250 was made to the school because more than 30 units of blood were collected.Mastowski said $50 of the donation will be used to fund a pizza party for the classroom with the most donor adults. Paul Baker's second-grade class will enjoy the pizza party very soon, she said.

The remaining $200 will be used to purchase safety goggles for the school's science program.

"We feel it's very exciting for the kids to be able to do science experiments, but it's even more important to be safe. These goggles will help to prevent eye injuries and ensure safe, fun experimentation," she said.

Many staff members were on site for the blood drive, despite the rainy weather. Four doctor wannabes, students Jennifer Echols, Brooke Weber, Kelly Garretson and Samantha Megill, dressed in scrub shirts and helped Mastowski keep donors comfortable.

On Feb. 11, representatives from New Jersey Blood Services, an affiliate of the New York Blood Center, came to Land O' Pines to teach the children all about blood. The 20-minute in-class sessions were designed to be an extension of the science curriculum.

Students learned all about blood- the components in a blood cell, the fighting mechanism of white blood cells and the entire process of how blood moves through the body.

"This program helped children in grades three through five understand how blood flows in a healthy person so they can better understand the need for donations for sick people with cancer and blood disorders," added Mastowski, who has been the school nurse at Land O' Pines for six years.

Blood donations are desperately needed, according to representatives from New Jersey Blood Services. If you are generally healthy, you may be eligible to donate blood. Donors must be at least 17 years old and weight at least 110 pounds. Call 800-448-3543 to learn more about eligibility, reasons why some people cannot donate blood and about upcoming area blood drives.