Carter And Noah Collins, Blood Services Heroes

Carter and Noah Collins, of Park Ridge are the Blood Services Heroes. In 2017, after seeing the devastation that Hurricane Harvey brought to Louisiana and Texas, these two brothers were determined to help. They partnered with the American Red Cross to host their first blood drive, which took place at their high school in 2018. Since then, Carter and Noah have continued to host an annual blood drive at their school.

However, in 2020, as schools closed due to the pandemic, the duo had to find a new location for their blood drive. Through networking and sponsorships, Carter, a senior in high school and Noah, a junior, were able to raise sufficient funds to rent a space in their local park district. The pair made sure to utilize social media to promote the blood drive, which despite being held during the pandemic, resulted in an increase of 60% in blood donations from their previous events.