Wagga teachers save lives in blood battle of the states at Lifeblood donor centre

Almost half of Wagga Public School staff rolled up their sleeves and gave blood and plasma at the Wagga Lifeblood donor centre on Tuesday as part of the Queensland and NSW Schools Blood Drive which kicked off last month.

The drive sees NSW school communities band together against their Queensland counterparts to see who can give the most blood.

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First-time donor and teacher at the school Marshal Macauley was a little nervous, but said it was for a great cause.

"It's daunting. I'm not a fan of needles, but I'm here." Mr Macauley said.

"It's a great initiative. Having the drive really does get the competitive juices flowing."

Fellow Wagga Public teacher and blood donor veteran Alexandra Brentnall organised the school's contingent of about 20 and said there were about five first-time donors.

"There were a few nervous faces, but the staff [at the donor centre] are beautiful and they make you feel really welcome," Ms Brentnall said.

She said the initiative to get involved in the challenge arose out of staff wellbeing week.

"Our focus was community service, so we thought of a couple of things to do and one of them was [to give blood]," Ms Brentnall said.

Wagga Public is just one of a number of local schools taking part in the initiative, with North Wagga Public staff heading down to the centre on Thursday.

"Quite a few schools have teamed up for the donation challenge, which is something we've run over the last two years," she said.

She said it has also been a great way to get out into the community and "help save lives" in the process.

Kicking off at the start of August and running through until the end of September, the drive is now at its midway point and Ms Brentnall encouraged the community to get on board as well.

"Just come down, get a smile from the staff, grab a milkshake, put your feet up, and you've saved lives in the process," she said.

To join the challenge, any member of the public giving blood or plasma at the centre on Berry Street can back a school taking part or simply mention the Wagga School Network.

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