Hearts for Action, a student club at The Frederick Gunn School, is supporting an American Red Cross Blood Drive on Sunday, April 2, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center on campus. Qualified students, faculty, parents, and community members are all invited and encouraged to participate in this annual event honoring Margaret P. Addicks for her 45 years of service to the school and the Town of Washington. Walk-ins are welcome but appointments are strongly encouraged. Please use this link to set up an appointment online. Donors can also save time by completing the Red Cross Rapid Pass.
Student volunteers led by Hearts for Action will be working with the American Red Cross to prepare for this year’s blood drive. Club members have been utilizing a solutionary framework to investigate the blood donation crisis. “Throughout the school year we have been working together to research the crisis and identify possible solutions to help address the blood storage crisis. Supporting The Margaret P. Addicks Memorial Blood Drive is a component of our solutionary work,” said Jen Hart, Blood Drive Manager and a member of the History Department faculty. “We’ve heard astounding facts about the unrelenting need for blood in the state of Connecticut, and we hope that our community’s efforts, albeit relatively small, will have a profound effect on those in need.”
Frederick Gunn School students age 17 and older who meet the Red Cross eligibility requirements will be invited to donate blood with a parent’s permission. Adults, including Gunn faculty, parents, and community members from Washington and surrounding areas, are welcome to participate. The Red Cross has released updated travel-related restrictions for those who have traveled internationally. For general questions about donating and eligibility, please contact the Red Cross at (866) 236-3276 or visit redcrossblood.org.
Peg Addicks, as she was known to all, passed away in 2010. She was a dedicated faculty member as well as a member of the Washington Cemetery Association, the Republican Town Committee, the Washington Garden Club, the Village Improvement Society, the Zoning Board of Appeals and other civic organizations.