Some quaked at the sight of needles, and others recoiled at the sight of blood.

These were just some of the jitters experienced by first-time donors at Singapore Press Holdings' (SPH) 9th annual Red Apple Day, organised in partnership with the Singapore Red Cross.

The Singapore Red Cross requires at least 350 units of blood daily to meet the transfusion needs of patients in Singapore. Currently, the average collection rate is 250 units daily, greatly falling short of what is required to supplement hospitals' needs for surgeries and transfusions.

Setting a prime example was SPH Chief Executive Officer Mr Alan Chan, who promptly showed up to donate blood with his colleagues.

Another donor, Ms Ginney Lim, Executive Vice-President for Legal and Corporate Communications at SPH, explained the rationale behind SPH's Red Apple Day.

"We think that organising it is a good move as it helps to save lives, and what better way to do this than within the company itself, so that staff can be encouraged to do so," she said. "I've been doing this for several years as there are people out there who really need help."

Indeed, first-time donors among the staff turned up after being convinced by their colleagues to contribute to a good cause by donating between 300 and 430 ml of blood.

"My colleague Adrian Goh asked if I wanted to come down and I said why not? Just to give it a try," says ST701 employee Ms Siow Hui, 28.

Another new donor, Ms Neo Si Hui, 22, told AsiaOne, "I've always wanted to do this but have always been putting it off so I decided to do this today."

One of those faithfully returning to donate was Mr Mohamed Zulkifli Bin Rahmat, deputy editor of Berita Harian, who shared how donating during his National Service (NS) helped him overcome his fear of the needle.

"It was a blessing in disguise," he said. "I came to know that it's not painful at all. At the age of 21 I made a vow to myself that I would become a regular blood donor."

Having been a donor since 1974, today was Mr Rahmat's 89th donation, and he hopes to continue donating for as long as he can.

Similarly, Mr Freddy Wee began donating during his NS days. "It's my 32nd donation today. During my NS days, there was a shortage of blood and it became a habit. It's a good deed."

DONATE BLOOD TO SAVE LIVES

All donors AsiaOne spoke to encouraged people to go out and donate blood.

"If they are healthy enough, come forward everyone, give blood," said Ms Lim. "There are people out there who need you."

Even Ms Siow, who admitted to being nervous prior to her donation, was amazed at how simple and painless the process was.

"Initially I was a little scared and nervous about it, but it's a piece of cake. Come and donate blood! Save lives!" she said with a bright grin.

In appreciation of their donation, donors were handed goodie bags on their way out. The goodie bags contained health supplements, food items and of course, a red apple.

Though there are currently no benefit entitlements for donating blood, all strongly believe that helping to save a life is reward enough.

"Last time, donors were given special benefits and although the latest programme doesn't include these, it doesn't matter," Mr Rahmat explained.

"It has to come from the heart."

SUCCESS FOR RED APPLE DAY

A total of about 300 blood donors showed up at the Singapore Press Holdings’ (SPH) News Centre auditorium to support SPH’s annual blood donation drive. A total of 223 units of blood were collected over the six-hour donation exercise.

Among the donors for SPH were CEO Mr Alan Chan and the staff featured in the SPH Red Apple Day 2008 publicity materials.

Said Mr Alan Chan, CEO of SPH:”We are pleased with the support shown for our SPH Red Apple Day, from our staff, the neighbouring organisations and the public community. This is a worthy cause as blood is the lifeline for individuals who need to combat medical problems and are undergoing complicated medical procedures. As a staunch corporate citizen, we are thankful that through this event, we can come forward to share the gift of life with those in need.”

Another regular blood donor was Ms Nancy Pang, Executive in the Finance Division of SPH. She says:“My first experience with blood donation was at the SPH Red Apple Day in 2005. In spite of my fear of pain and needles, I still went through the process as I felt I was doing something significant and meaningful to help people in need of blood."

Other notable personalities who were on hand to lend support to the SPH Red Apple Day included radio DJs from 100.3FM such as Jian Wen and Ken Lo.