October 10, 2001 The Lion’s Eye Page 3 Saving life; one pint at a time By GARRETT TREER Staff Writer What do you want, blood?!? Well, to put it bluntly, yes. The American Red Cross is at it again. They're staging a blood drive this Wednesday, Oct. 10. It will be from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the Classroom Lounge. The Red Cross, like Uncle Sam, "Wants You!" It is understood that most PSU Delco students under- stand the tried and true methods for donating blood as well as what that entails. So why not be original? Don't misunderstand — donating blood is an awesome thing, but with the current influx of blood donations leav- ing the Red Cross swamped, it is time to reconsider things a bit. The first and greatest thing you can do to help out is to schedule an appointment. The Red Cross has issued state- ment upon statement trying to make the most of the time they have to work with. So what else is there you can do besides donate money? Pheresis donations are the answer. What does it mean, you ask? It literally means “to sep- arate or take away.” The donation itself means that you donate a singular component of your blood, though not the blood itself. So why choose that? Simply put, a pheresis donation (for the platelets donat- ed) is worth five whole blood donations. Even when you ‘make a whole blood donation, it is separated out into dif- ferent components. One of which would happen to be platelets. Platelets and sometimes granulocytes (infection fighting cells) are components of the blood that are especially in demand. The cause behind that is the fact that platelets last for only five days before they must be used. So with whole blood donations only equating to one-fifth of a pheresis donation and even then being only every 56 days, you can begin to see why a pheresis donation is so special. Not only that, but there is even more to it. People having rigorous chemotherapy sessions, bone marrow transplants, having treatments for leukemia or aplastic anemia are all in need of platelets in the event of a bleeding episode. Perhaps this isn't directly related to you, but for many, those people are friends, parents, siblings and even chil- dren. If you're even slightly concerned that this will inter- fere with a whole blood donation, read on. Not only is it okay for you to give whole blood after a pheresis dona- tion, but it would be greatly appreciated because both donations are critical to maintaining a suitable blood sup- ply. If you want to find out more details on this donation or any other services to aid the Red Cross, there is a phone number just for you: 1-800-GIVE-LIFE. For those who can't even stand the thought of a dreaded needle, there is even an alternative for you. Why not vol- unteer? Just go to www.redcross.org and check out vol- unteer opportunities there or use the locater to find your local Red Cross contact info and find out ways you can help. There are all sorts of £ jobs, including event specific jobs that would be great for someone ‘with a rather busy sched- ule. Simply fit one day of helping out into your schedule Photo by Danielle Rossi One life saver finishes donating blood at the blood drive and you will have made an awesome donation to the Red Cross minus the whole needle poking shenanigans. Whatever you might decide, just remember that every lit- tle bit helps. Unwind, relax, Fall Week comes at last By ADAM WOJCIECHOWICZ Assistant editor Day in and day out, college life got you down? Rest assured that someone is looking out for you, and the fruits of their labors come in the form of Fall Week, extending from about Oct. 22 to Now. 2. "Fall Week is a period during the fall semester in which the Student Government Organization [and THON] put together events designed to break up some of the monotony of campus life, and to help the students relax," said Keith Farrell, SGA vice president. Traditionally, Fall Week would span just one week, organized exclusively by the SGA for the benefit of the student body. This year however, the SGA has combined forces with THON, yielding an entire two weeks of on-campus events brought to students by both organizations. THON is a fundraising group that spans the entire PSU school system, Photo by Anteia Consorto The Money Pit was one of many enjoyable activities at last year's Spring Week. SCHEDULE OF FALL WEEK EVENTS Oct. 20 - Family Day, 10:30 am. - 3:30 p.m. Oct. 22 - faculty/student volley ball game, Commons gym Oct. 23 - radio station 103.9fm visit, Commons patio Oct. 24 - radio station - Y-100.3 FM visit, Commons patio Oct. 25 - buffet lunch, all you can eat in the café, 11:30 am.-1 p.m. Oct. 26 - overnight Clubs Lock- In, 9:30 p.m.-10 a.m. Oct. 30 - Halloween Dance, Vairo patio and lounge, 8 p.m. to midnight, Cost: $5 : one of their meetings at noon on Fridays famous for its annual dance marathon at Main Campus (which students still have a chance to attend). All proceeds go towards aiding children who have can- Cer. "This year our goal is to work with "THON, not competing against them - the whole point...is to make it all bigger and better," said SGA president Andrew Lowry. "We also want to give everyone an escape from work for those two weeks." Of particular note is the Halloween Dance kicking off the THON portion of Fall Week, and one of the rare evening dance opportunities that comes to Delco. All guests are encouraged to dress up, with cash prizes for best costume, best couple, and runners up. There will be a five-dollar charge at the door, money that goes directly to the THON charity funds. Those interested in THON can contact Chairperson Cathy Nguyen, or attend in the Lion's Den, Common's Building. The spring semester counterpart to Fall Week, is of course Spring Week, sched- uled tentatively for April 15-19. "I'm very excited, and am looking for- ward to [Fall Week]," said Lowry. "And as for Spring Week a few months from now — it's going to be even bigger." Gay-Straight Alliance seeks student support Continued from page 1 In fact, it currently consists of one member, Jamie Baxter, who is also the president. : " It is difficult for us to drum up mem- bers because our campus is a commuter campus and many students still live at home and therefore may have issues about coming out to their parents," Baxter commented. There are many other reasons for gay students not to come out. "They are afraid of being labeled... it is hard for them to come together when there are so few who are bold enough to come out. Our mission here is simply to establish a presence that would provide gays and lesbians the support in dealing with their issues," said Dr. Arnold Markley, GSA advisor. Establishing their presence will lead to. a better understanding of who they are and then lead to an eventual’ acceptance. So how are they going about this? More than likely, this will be explained in detail at the Oct. 12 meeting, but one major upcoming event will be the orga- nization's hosting of Rev. Karla L. Fleshmon. Fleshmon is a roltister of the Universal "The pagans... Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Church. Her uniqueness is that she is a gay minister, pasturing a gay church. Take in light, those who blame every- one for the recent tragic events, like the hypotritical quote by a very famous tel- evangelist, the reverend Jerry Falwell, feminists, and the gays, and the lesbians.....all the people who have tried to secularize America, I point my finger at them and say, You helped this happen." As you can see, a man of God is not necessarily a man for others. This is why it is important for the GSA to host speak- ers such as Rev. Fleshmon, so that they can remind gay students that who they are is not evil or against anyone. That brings us back to the point of this article. The reason why this organization needs the same amount of support as the American public salutes to the American flag is that gay citizens are Americans too. So refember today to be proud of who you are no matter what that may be. As John Lennon once said, "There's nothing you can do, but you can learn how to be yourself in time, it's easy, all syowheedisiove” ois
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers