By:LARRY MAIER
Last week, Andrew "A.J." Frey made a difference, and he helped many others do the same.
On Saturday, Sept. 22, A.J., with the help of fellow members of Boy Scout Troop 23, held a blood drive at Calhoun High School. It was A.J.'s Eagle Scout project, which he had planned for months. But after the World Trade Center attacks of Sept. 11 and the subsequent rush to donate blood by Long Islanders, A.J. figured there might not be many people left who still wanted to or would be able to donate.
Long Island Blood Services had hoped to collect 38 pints of blood at A.J.'s blood drive.
A.J. had set up about 40 appointments for donations in the previous weeks and was told by the blood-service staff to expect about three-quarters of that number to show. It seems they miscalculated just a bit.
"We got a much better turnout than we expected. I was just expecting the people who had made appointments and that's it," said A.J., 17, of Merrick, who is a freshman at Hofstra University.
But in all, Long Island Blood Services collected almost 60 units of blood that day. A.J. was even forced to turn away many walk-in donors and to cancel several appointments.
Everyone who was turned away or whose appointment was cancelled was encouraged to set up another date to give blood. Though Long Island Blood Services and the American Red Cross report that they now have blood supplies to satisfy immediate needs, both say there will be a need for more blood in the near future. Blood has a shelf life and the need is ever-present.
"Every single day, Long Island needs about 800 pints of blood," said Mary Weis, an account executive with Long Island Blood Services who helped A.J. organize the blood drive. "We're asking people to donate a week or a month from now so we don't create a shortage."
To A.J., the success of the blood drive demonstrated the heightened sense of patriotism felt by Americans in the wake of the recent terrorist attacks and their desire to do something, anything to make a difference. "It shows that people still really want to help their country," A.J. said. "It was a great response."
And it doesn't matter to A.J. where the blood goes, as long as it is put to good use. "Maybe it goes to help people at the World Trade Center or maybe it goes to help people with cancer," said A.J. "I just hope it goes somewhere and helps."
Last week's blood drive has helped A.J. put the finishing touches on his Scouting career, which began with Cub Scouts in first grade when he was living in Queens. A.J. said he joined the Scouts at his father's suggestion, but stuck with Scouting because of the good times.
"My dad asked me if I wanted to join, and I said OK," remembered A.J. "As a kid, there was a lot of fun stuff to do like trips to museums and carnivals and camping."
As he got older, the leadership skills and persistence A.J. said he developed through Scouting helped him keep with it.
Now, A.J. is on the verge of attaining the highest honor in Scouting, the Eagle rank. Only 4 percent of those who enter Boy Scouts make it to this prestigious level. It is an accomplishment A.J. admits makes him feel proud.
"It's something you put in years of hard work for, and it's going to feel pretty good when it finally pays off," A.J. said.
And as one road comes to an end for A.J., another begins. He graduated last year from Calhoun High School, where he played varsity baseball and was on the club roller hockey team. A.J. recently began his freshman year at Hofstra University and plans to try out for the school's baseball team.
A.J. said that one of the requirements of an Eagle Scout project is that it benefits the community. A.J.'s project certainly accomplished that goal.
"A.J.'s efforts made a big difference," said Weis. "Besides collecting blood, it created more of an awareness of the need to give blood in the younger Scouts, who also learned what the process is all about."
"I think people realize that giving blood is important, especially now after the tragedy," added A.J. "Giving blood lets people know there is something they can do to make a difference. We all need to feel like we can make a difference."
