District-Wide Band-Aid Box Drive

Coming to your school in Half Hollow Hills…The BIG Band-Aid Box Drive, a district-wide community effort to benefit Schneider Children’s Hospital (newly re-named Steven & Alexandra Cohen Children’s Medical Center).

This is a personal initiative introduced by Hills West senior, Nathaniel Kristall.

In Nathaniel’s middle school years, he was diagnosed with ITP (Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura). In short, a virus (the result of a bad head cold) attacked his immune system causing the body’s white platelets to be destroyed when released into the bloodstream. Platelets are needed for clot formation. This low platelet count can result in visible bruisability and tendency for internal bleeding after trauma. At the one-year mark, his condition was diagnosed as chronic, but stable ever since.

Nathaniel says, “I spent a lot of time at the hospital getting transfusions and missed a lot of school. I met a lot of kids, some who were really sick. Now that I’m older my condition has resolved itself. And I wanted to do something to give back. Collecting boxes of band-aids that the hospital could use seemed like a good idea and fun for the kids. They use hundreds of them every day.”

For further information on implementing Nathaniel’s band-aid drive within your organization, contact him at natekristall@aol.com



Pictured,
Dr. Jeffrey Lipton, Chief of Hematology/Oncology at Cohen Medical Center and Hills West senior Nathaniel Kristall.


Submitted and photo’d by Felice Kristall.