There are a lot of great parts of the United Way of the Battle Creek and Kalamazoo Region, however, I have to say one of my favorites is our Youth United Way organization.  We have a collection of high school students from around the area who are working toward making their community a better place, while learning the finer points of the grant process and philanthropy in general.

On Monday, August 20th the students will be hosting a blood drive for Michigan Blood in the United Way Boardroom at our Kalamazoo location.  This drive does two awesome things: 1. It helps those in need and saves lives through blood donation.  2.  It raises money for our YUW students that allows them to impact the community in so many ways throughout the year. The blood drive starts at 4pm and we’d love to see you there!

Now, maybe you’re scared of needles, blood or youth (we hope not that last one).  Well, let me tempt you by saying in addition to saving lives and empowering the youth of our community you might also win a prize!  Some of our always generous local businesses have been kind enough to donate some gift cards for our participants.  Not to mention, I’m pretty sure you’re more than entitled to a cookie after donating.  So please, join us and help save lives and support our amazing students of Youth United Way.