By Agnes CONSTANTE

After lying on a bed inside a 27-foot vehicle, La Crescenta resident Jane Neff Rollins weighs one pint less than she did 10 minutes ago. A few moments later, she steps outside the automobile with a red bandage wrapped around her left arm.

She takes a seat on a plastic chair underneath a tent and reaches inside a container for a packaged cookie. She’s not allowed to leave for the next 15 minutes, but she doesn’t mind giving some of her time to help replenish the short-supplied blood banks of Huntington Hospital in Pasadena.

Rollins was one of the people who donated to the blood drive held Tuesday at the Crescenta Valley Sheriff’s Station. The drive ran from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Despite her fear of needles, Rollins has been a blood donor for many years.

“It’s one of those things you can do for your community that really doesn’t take a lot of effort,” she said.

Although donors had the option to schedule appointments, most donors throughout the day simply stopped by.

“You’re usually looking at a lot of walk-in traffic,” Jackie Baca-Geary, a recruiter at Huntington Hospital, said. “Most people like to walk in based on their schedule.”

One of the walk-ins was Long Beach resident Matthew Vanderwerff, who said he donates blood for personal reasons and does it as often as he can. His uncle was diagnosed with leukemia three years ago and he served in Iraq as a Marine.

“I do it to help out other people that are in need,” he said.

Several members of the La Cañada City Hall were also among the donors on Tuesday.

Each blood donor received a coupon for a pint of ice cream to Baskin Robbins. Donors were also advised to avoid heavy lifting and strenuous exercise for the next 24 hours.

  AGNES CONSTANTE, blood drive, JUNE 23, News