Seaford Lawmaker Holds Sept. 11th Day of Service

In his strive to make September 11th a national day of service, Congressman Peter King (R-Seaford) and many of his employees took the matter into their own hands this past Saturday. The Seaford resident and longtime Long Island congressman held his fourth annual blood drive at his Massapequa Park office on the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

"This is being done because there isn't enough blood for hospitals and more importantly the patients," said Patricia Gartland, one of the volunteers at the blood drive. "This blood is all going to hospitals in the New York area for the people who need it."

Gartland emphasized that the blood drive was not run by another organization or company and was conducted soley by Congressman King and his employees. Parked outside King's offices was a New York Blood Center bus. "In only three hours into the six hour blood drive, the bus already was filled with 67 pints of blood," she said.

According to Dionis Xhindolli, the supervisor and specialist running the blood drive, only two percent of people in the New York City metropolitian area donate blood and only five percent nationally.  Xhindolli said that the blood drive was held at an opportune time since donations tend to diminish during the summer and holiday season. He said that with the summer just ending hospitals are in a state of "emergency appeal."

One local organization that provided many volunteers for the blood drive was the Seaford Republican Club. "We did it for the community and to create a sense of helping one another," said Seaford Republican Club president Greg Colorossi.

Congressman King is still working to make September 11 a national day of service and submitted legislation to the U.S. House of Representatives.

"The blood drive is a way to encourage people to perform one special deed on September 11^th, as a way to honor the thousands of good people who were murdered by terrorists nine years ago," said King in a statement."It is also a way to rekindle the spirit of unity and compassion that existed in the nation after the tragedy."