In the aftermath of the attack on Kenya’s Westgate Mall in Nairobi, the country responded with unity: thousands of people came out to support the country by donating blood to the Kenyan Red Cross in order to help the victims of the tragedy.

Inspired by this, Daraja Academy administration booked a blood drive with the Red Cross in order to give students the opportunity to give back to those in need across the country. Because of the generosity the country has shown, the Red Cross did not have time to come by Daraja until last week.

Nearly half of the eligible-to-donate Daraja Academy community decided to donate blood. Although the blood donated from Daraja’s campus may not be going directly to victims of the attack, since it was nearly a month ago, students and staff felt good about their contribution to the Red Cross and Kenya as a whole.

After a short presentation to the girls, Red Cross volunteers and representatives began to set up their donation space in the lounge outside of a dormitory, Utamu Hall. Girls filled out their donation forms and lined up excitedly for a prick-test, blood pressure test, and a turn on the scale to see if they were eligible. These tests were meant to test overall health, iron levels, and weight, as donors must weight at least 50 kg and be at least 16 years old.

Administrator, Charles gets his blood pressure checked to ensure that he is eligible to donate.

Administrator, Charles gets his blood pressure checked to ensure that he is eligible to donate.

Dean of Academics, Charles Mbuto, donated first, showing the girls how easy, safe, and painless the process was. From there, other Daraja staff and students began to take a seat and donate. For most of the afternoon, the line led out the door.

Sylvia, a brave first year Daraja student reported, “It didn’t hurt at all,” encouraging other students to follow in her footsteps.

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With girls peering in through the windows from the outside of the donation room, Euphrasia and Esther, both third-year students, expressed their gratitude for the Red Cross’ visit and their feelings about donating: “It feels good to help our country in any way,” reported Esther.

Euphrasia continued, “we usually do community service at home on breaks, but donating blood is a different kind of service to our community.”

Agreeing, Esther concluded, “we feel very proud.”

By late that afternoon, the Red Cross had collected donations from 45 people in the Daraja community including students, teachers, administrators, staff, and volunteers. We’d like to extend a big thank you to the Kenyan Red Cross of Laikipia Country for visiting our campus and affording us the opportunity to donate blood! From the Daraja Academy community: Asante sana! (Thank you very much!)

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