Blood Drive “Harnesses the Power of the Ravenscroft Community”

On Feb. 7, Ravenscroft hosted a blood drive in partnership with the American Red Cross. Gregg and Dawn MacLaren, parents of Emma ’19 and Ethan ’25, were among the friendly volunteers helping staff the event, signing in student, faculty and staff donors and making sure the day ran smoothly. 

For the MacLarens, supporting this drive was a way to give back to an organization that has done much for them. Here, Dawn MacLaren shares the impetus for the blood drive and how grateful they are that the Ravenscroft community so generously answered the call to give the gift of life. 

Finding purpose by giving back to the community has always been a driver for our family. Ethan ’25 has been an active volunteer with the Food Bank; his older sister, Emma ’19, supported ATHENA International and the Red Cross as both a high school and college student; Gregg supports rural North Carolina communities; and I am active in organizations that promote economic independence for women and their families, music education throughout North Carolina and, for the past several years, the American Red Cross, since I joined its Board of Directors.

The American Red Cross touches so many lives. They provide emergency assistance, including shelters for families impacted by house fires, hurricanes and other natural disasters. The organization supports military families in multiple ways. They also offer CPR and first-aid training, install free smoke detectors across multiple communities and provide desperately needed blood, all without any government funding. It humbles me to see the overwhelming commitment by the nonprofit’s staff and volunteers. Unbelievably, 90% of the force is staffed by volunteers — serving 10 million people in our region!

We’ve learned that the Red Cross provides 40% of the nation’s blood supply needed for surgeries, cancer treatment, chronic illnesses and traumatic injuries. But to do so, it must collect 13,000 donations nationally to meet patient demand. 

Clockwise from top left: Ethan MacLaren ’25 and his mother, Dawn, at Senior Night for the Winter Track team; Dawn and Gregg MacLaren check on donor registrations during the Feb. 7 blood drive in Cox Court; Audrey Kalorin ’26 enjoys a snack after giving blood; Assistant Director of People and Operations Eva Jones donates blood.

The idea to host the blood drive came up after Ethan and I were talking about how he might get involved to support the organization. Ethan required blood transfusions following his open-heart surgeries a number of years ago, so it seemed a natural fit. We then realized that we could harness the power of the Ravenscroft community to help address this critical need.

Thankfully, college counselor and Director of Civic Engagement Bill Pruden was a ready and willing supporter of the idea. He quickly coordinated the necessary backing within the school, and he was instrumental in orchestrating all the moving parts to provide the facilities and faculty/staff support.

We had an initial goal of 30 donors — and we were thrilled to actually achieve 57 registrations. All donations pass through rigorous FDA-driven screening and processing, as well as safety and quality standards from organizations such as the CDC.

Each donation that passes the requirements can help multiple lives. Knowing that the Ravenscroft community was able to impact close to 100 lives is just incredible to us!

Ravenscroft has been an invaluable resource of support, kindness and community for our family. To share that kindness and caring for the benefit of others makes it that much more meaningful.

To learn more about the Red Cross and how you can support the organization, visit North Carolina Region | American Red Cross.