Needles and blood certainly are two things that high school students try to avoid at all costs. But on Feb. 26, SMCHS students ushered in the season of Lent by looking past these fears for the greater good of those around them.

Every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood, and more than 41,000 blood donations are needed every day. However, less than 5 percent of healthy Americans who are able to give blood actually chose to do so.

The SMCHS community is defies this statistic twice a year at blood drives held by Campus Ministry.

“[Giving blood] saves lives and for every pint of blood donated, it saves three lives,” said Nancy Hormuth, director of Campus Ministry. “I think it is love and Caritas Christi in action when students think beyond themselves to care and love other people.”

Hormuth has seen that each time the blood drive is held, students are excited to give and thrilled to be living out their faith.

“One of the things we focus on [in Lent] is alms giving, so besides the charity drives we do, this opportunity for giving blood is so extremely helpful and important for others,” Hormuth said. “I personally think it is one of the most wonderful gifts that a student, or anyone for that matter, can give to another. For the families who have loved one who are ill and in need, this is just the most wonderful gift.”

Hormuth isn’t the only person who recognizes how important giving blood is to the lives of so many people. Seniors Carlos Alvarez and Natalie Torossian were on hand along with other students to help out with the blood drive.

“I think it is very beneficial for students our age to give blood mainly for the reason that many kids growing up have had relatives or other family members who have gone through tragic experiences in their lives, and they want to help out in some way,” Alvarez said. “These opportunities that our school provides us with gives us the chance not only to give back, but also to reflect on the situations in our lives and the lives of others.”

For each blood drive, SMCHS is given a goal that must be met for how much blood should be donated. During this drive in particular, over 80 people donated blood.

Over the course of the 2014-2015 school year, 165 units of blood were donated by SMCHS students and faculty. Those donations not only met the goal that was given to us, but have also helped to potentially save up to 495 lives.

“I think giving blood is so important because it is such a small amount of our time that we give that can give other people so much more time to be with their families,” Torossian said. “Even though it may not cure them, it can give them that extra few months with their loved ones, and just by giving an hour of our time, we are giving so much more to three people.”