When Kelly Wilbanks, a recruiter with AnMed Health’s Blood Center has a critical need, she knows she needs to make just one call: to Anderson University, and the team from its Thrive Wellness Center.
“Before you know it, we have an outpouring of individuals coming in with their sleeves rolled up, with a genuine look of readiness and willingness to help others,” Wilbank said. “What a relief to know they will always have our back.”
At the Blood Center’s annual donor banquet, AU and the Thrive team won the Joseph Pridgen Humanitarian Award, the center’s highest award, for “Outstanding Participation in the Blood Donor Program of AnMed Health Blood Center.”
“It is an honor and a privilege to accept the Joseph Pridgen Humanitarian Award on behalf of Anderson University,” said Deb Taylor, Director of Health Services at Anderson University. “We are pround to partner with AnMed Blood Center to provide life-saving blood to those in need.”
Taylor said AU’s efforts reflect the university’s ethos of having a positive effect on the world around them.
“Promoting blood donation on our campus teachers our students to give back to the community,” she said. “This aligns with scripture, specifically Galatians 6:7. ‘Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.’”