Blood Drive, Habitat For Humanity, & Erie Uplink

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were encouraged to participate in the National Day of Service and Remembrance to honor all those so deeply affected by the events of 9/11.

Although preparations for the day of service began late in the Boulder area, local church leaders and members joined together in planning, circulating
information, and hosting a variety of events in which the community and members could participate according to their choice and ability.

A cooperative effort between Vitalant and the Boulder Communication Council brought a blood drive to the Broomfield church building. Below are some of the highlights of the September 11 blood drive:

  • 37 donors were registered to give blood (out of a total drive capacity of 48 slots for donors)
  • 12 people made their first blood donation!
  • 27 whole blood donations made (each one helps three people)
  • 7 Double Red Blood Cell donations collected
  • 6 Plasma Apheresis donations collected (def: the removal of blood plasma from the body by the withdrawal of blood, its separation into plasma and cells, and the reintroduction of the cells, used especially to remove antibodies in treating autoimmune diseases.)
  • Total of 40 blood donations collected, saving 94 lives!

The goal of the drive was to collect 30 donations in total.

The Boulder coordinating representative from Vitalant said the following after the drive:

“Thank you for everything you did to engage congregants and the community with the blood drive! The time and effort you put into marketing the drive and getting people signed up ahead of time has helped A LOT of patients, while ensuring Vitalant remains sustainable to continue serving patients and hospitals in Colorado and beyond, and we’re grateful to count you among our friends. We couldn’t do our good work without you! Participating in this Day of Service blood drive was a heartwarming experience, thank you for the warm welcome to myself, Colleen and the entire donor care team.”

The second source presented to the community for service on this national day of observance was the opportunity to donate a day to the remodel of a future home in Gunbarrel, Colorado: As described by Habitat for Humanity:

“Flatirons Habitat will be remodeling homes that will be made available for
purchase to local families, at an affordable price. This is made possible
through a partnership with a Community Land Trust, expanding our ability
to serve more people in the community!”

Volunteers worked to repair the decks on two duplex units. Half of the group painted wood panels and trim. The other half of the group installed those panels on the underside of the second floor decks that also serve as carports.

Work involved painting, removing old screws and metal staples from under the decks, measuring and cutting the panels to the right sizes, adding some extra wood support pieces as necessary, and then nailing the newly painted and cut panels up.

Participants in this service which actually occurred on Saturday, September 12, included five volunteers.

Underside of Deck before work was done.
Underside of deck after work was completed

The third service option available on 9/11 was making a donation of new socks, hats and gloves for students in need in Erie and Broomfield through Erie Uplink.

Donations bins were located at the Erie Recreation Center and at the Broomfield Church building where the blood drive occurred. Lisa from Erie Uplink said the following in regards to the hefty amount of donations collected from the two locations:

“I am so touched by the generosity of the donations. I can’t wait for our team to see all the darling, high-quality donations when we meet on Wednesday. It looks like folks shopped for a variety of sizes, you can’t imagine how special it is for the kids we serve to receive new items that are just their size. We had almost two tubs of donations at the office over the weekend. We should have enough to provide each of the children in our Tiger Packs program with a new hat, pair of gloves or mittens, and 4-6 pairs of socks. Please pass our sincerest thanks along to the folks who participated in the 9/11 Day of Service- on behalf of the Erie kids who will be thrilled to receive these beautiful items, THANK YOU! – Lisa”

Provided to the community also for those who could not help in person on
this day, was an opportunity with There with Care. This organization’s
mission, “is to provide a wide range of thoughtful and fundamental services
to families and children during the critical phase of a medical crisis.” A
representative from There with Care established a “wish list” of items on
Amazon where people could choose to purchase and donate online.

Although at the time of this writing a definite amount of donations or an itemlized list of items was not available, There with Care stated that donations well exceeded $200.

Community and church members were further encouraged to seek out their
own opportunities to serve their community as individuals and families.
Through the coordinated efforts of the Boulder Stake Presidency and
Communication Council, and the hours, dollars and unselfishness of those who so kindly gave of themselves in service, this year’s 9/11 National Day of
Service and Remembrance was a success!

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