Students and staff lend full support to Curtin Volunteers! blood donation drive

Miri – 14 August, 2009 – Curtin Volunteers!, Curtin University of Technology, Sarawak Malaysia’s student volunteer group, organised yet another successful biannual Blood Donation Drive on 12 August 2009, which attracted well over a hundred potential blood donors from amongst students and staff.

The drive was organised with the support of staff of the Miri Blood Bank, as well as members of ANSARA Miri Division, who provided food and drinks for the donors.

According to organising chairperson Foo Fang Jun, Curtin Volunteers! holds blood donation drives in aid of the Miri Blood Bank each semester. A total of 14 blood donation drives have been organised on the university campus since 2003, all of which have received positive response from students and staff of the university.

In thanking all those who turned up for the event, she said, “We are very fortunate to have very community-spirited students and staff on our campus who would always lend their full support to events such as this. We are always encouraged by the response.”

She added that they were actually expecting a lower than usual turnout this time around given the hazy weather and concerns about Influenza A. “Not only did a large number of students and staff turn up, the majority of them were accepted as donors. Out of 133 potential donors, 97 were accepted after screening, which is a significant increase over our previous drive,” she said.

Curtin Volunteers! has been actively involved in community service activities and programmes since its formation in 2002, which have included raising funds for charities such as the Single Mothers’ Association Miri, Palliative Care Association of Miri and the Sarawak Children’s Cancer Society, in addition to other charitable bodies and non-governmental organisations.

The Curtin Volunteers!’ next event will be its annual John Curtin Charity Month Celebration in October, which will see the Curtin Volunteers! visiting several rural communities in Sarawak as part of their annual OutReach Programme.

Staff and students donating blood.

Students eagerly registering to donate blood.

Curtin Volunteers! and Miri Blood Bank staff pose for group photo.