BloodSource’s seventh annual “Causeway Classic Blood Drive” will take place on Nov. 4 and 5. The blood drive will also serve as a competition between UC Davis and Sacramento State in terms of turnout for students, faculty and administrators.
In the past six years of the blood drive’s existence, UC Davis won the first three years and Sacramento State won the next three, so this year will serve as a tiebreaker.
Since 2008, the Causeway Classic has become BloodSource’s most successful blood drive for high school and college campuses in the Sacramento area. Since its start in 2008, 18,800 people have become registered blood donors through the blood drive.
Felicia Roper is an account manager for BloodSource and works with the UC Davis campus for the blood drive.
“We are hoping to see over 1,600 participants over the two days to have a chance at beating Sac State,” Roper said.
Roper also stressed the importance of donating blood in general to both raise awareness and save lives in local hospitals.
“We support over 40 hospitals in our area, so we’re really making an impact here in our community,” she said. “I think that really hits home.”
Alexander Sigua, public relations manager for BloodSource, also emphasized the importance of raising awareness for blood donations on college campuses.
“Every two seconds, someone in the U.S. requires a blood transfusion,” Sigua said. “So it’s important to always have a regular blood supply on hand in order to meet the need of patients and hospitals across the country.”
BloodSource works with both universities to publicize the blood drive. Both competitive school pride and the recognition of the importance of donating blood have built up the significance of the event since its start.
UC Davis students, staff and administrators can participate tomorrow and on Wednesday at the East and West Quad. Participants will receive a free T-shirt. Participants from both UC Davis and Sacramento State are able to participate on campus.
Photo by Courtesy
