“Give a meaningful gift this holiday season,” a flyer for the upcoming American Red Cross Blood Drive and food drive at Newtown Middle School reads.

The drive is set for Tuesday, December 8, and it is being sponsored by Cluster 8 Purple. The event is also collecting food for FAITH (Food Assistance, Immediate Temporary Help) Food Pantry in Sandy Hook.

The blood and food drive will be open to the public from 2:15 pm, after school is released, until 6 pm, in the middle school’s cafeteria,11 Queen Street. Expected donors are asked to schedule an appointment in advance by visiting redcrossblood.org online and using the sponsor code “NMS1208” or by calling800-733-2767. Walk-ins will be accepted, but making an appointment is requested.

As explained by cluster teachers Danelle Egan and Andrew San Angelo, students are taking part in all aspects of the event.

Mr San Angelo said the two educators strive to make their cluster a community, and after Ms Egan had the idea for a drive, they sought students to volunteer to work on different groups for the effort. In November cluster awards were given out based on “giving,” and the idea for the drive stemmed from that.

“They’ve been great,” said Mr San Angelo about the students involved in the effort. “They’ve been very enthusiastic.”

Ms Egan estimated between 60 and 70 students volunteered to help the blood and food drive, including students from outside the cluster.

Students are working in groups, with some students working to chair each group. The groups have been overseeing publicity, baking, and other aspects of coordinating the effort, according to the teachers. The baking crew is working to sell food at the drive. Bakers said they plan to sell food options like the “magic crescent rolls” the students learned to make in Family and Consumer Science, brownies, cake pops, and cookies.

NMS student Bryce Benson said he volunteered to help because he was inspired by his mother’s work as a doctor.

“I like talking to people about things that are important to the community and spreading awareness of things that are important to save lives,” said student Anna Burns.

Students in the publicity crew have been working to spread information to other students by visiting classes and sharing information about donating blood.

“I just like doing this kind of stuff because it is giving back to the community,” said Miles Divert.

Members of the publicity crew for the drive also shared information from the Red Cross when speaking with their fellow students. Stephanie Mulvihill, with the American Red Cross, visited the school and shared information with the students to pass on to others, according to Ms Egan.

“Only 38 percent of people are eligible to donate and only 10 percent of people actually donate in total,” said student Caitlin Farrell.

While Ms Egan said the middle school students are too young to donate to the American Red Cross, she said the theme has been about sharing information about being a donor in the future and spreading the word about the blood and food drive.

“If you don’t want to donate blood, please come and donate cans and food,” said student Hannah Weatherby.

Ms Egan said while some members of the population cannot donate blood, “100 percent of the population can donate a can of soup or a box of macaroni and cheese.”

According to the drive’s publicity students and Ms Egan, donors give one pint of blood and are eligible to donate again every three months.

“All the blood stays in Connecticut... So any donation will stay local,” Ms Egan said.

More information about the American Red Cross is available online at its website redcrossblood.org.