Our Project
Mission:
Our mission is to educate the community, especially the Asian community, about the process and benefits of donating blood, and ultimately recruit more blood donors through partnership with Bloodworks NW.
Inspiration:
Finding suitable blood for those in need can be difficult, especially for minorities. The tragic death of Kirby Wong, who is believed to have built up antigens to caucasian blood after receiving more than five hundred blood transfusions within the span of two and half weeks, is an alarming wake up call to minorities, that in the case of emergencies, suitable blood may not be available. While blood transfusions, in general, work across genetic and ethnic lines, it is almost always safer for those in need to receive blood from someone ethnically similar to them. Ourselves being Asian American, we felt the responsibility to help our own ethnic community by starting the project with the mindset of saving lives.
Signifance:
Blood is donated to achieve a paramount goal: save lives. Just one pint of blood can save 3 lives. More than 75% of all Americans reaching age 72 will have to have a blood transfusion, so it’s crucial that blood donations are available for those people. Additionally, blood diversity is crucial for different ethnic groups. 60% of Asians cannot find a matching donor because their body rejects blood of other ethnic groups and because Asians represent a very small portion of blood donors.
Find out more about what we have done and our upcoming events here!
