[Cheonji Ilbo Incheon = Reporter Mi-jeong Kim] On the 27th, the youth volunteer group 'We Are One' of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji Church of Jesus, Chairman Man-hee Lee) launched its blood donation campaign with full vigour, drawing global attention.

[Cheonji Ilbo = Reporter Bo-Young Hong] “At first, I thought that it would not be practical when I heard it said that some 10,000 people would donate blood. But hadn't 18,000 people already done so? Actually, I really felt their strength (of Shincheonji Church). I would like to express my deepest gratitude for the unimaginable group blood donation at the beginning of this most difficult time.”

Jin-suk Yang, head of the Logistics and Transportation department of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, predicted at the meeting held at Dongbu Blood Centre that the target of 70,000 donors is expected to increase by more than roughly 30,000 donors, and that a total expected figure of roughly 100,000 people would participate in the group blood donation campaign. He said, “We have 70,000 young people, and in addition to that, we have appointed people of different ages as honorary members to participate in the blood donation campaign.”

In particular, this campaign is being held at a time when blood supply levels are critical. According to the Blood Management Headquarters of the Korean Red Cross, blood supply is seasonally affected. August is the off-season when all schools are on break, office workers go on vacation and the weather is very hot, so blood supply levels are lower than usual. Blood reserves need to be held at an average of 5 days or more for stable medical activity, but in August, it usually drops to 3.5 days, approaching the 'amber' stage.

Moreover, with more than 100,000 confirmed cases a day due to the resurgence of COVID-19, the number of people in quarantine increases and the amount of movement decreases. Furthermore, as the number of critical cases increases, the demand for blood becomes very high.

Current status of red blood cell preparations over the past month

In the past month, the trend of red blood cell preparations has been falling. The trend illustrates a drop from 40,000 units on the 28th of last month to about 30,000 units on the 13th and 23,210 units today. In particular, in the case of O blood type, the number has been reduced to 4898 units, which equates to 3.4 days' supply.

Director Park said, “August is always a difficult time for blood inventories, but due to the Coronavirus, the stocks have dropped sharply. Right now, they are held for about 4 days, but in the case of O blood type, reserves are held at about 3 days, so it's already reached a somewhat critical level.”

[Cheonji Ilbo Gumi = Reporter Ha-hyun Kang] Shincheonji Volunteer Group, Gumi Branch (managed by Won-ho Lee), conducted a water purification service in Geumcheon on the 23rd August with the slogan 'Green for nature'. 

This voluntary initiative is part of the 'One Soil, One River of Love Movement' that Gumi City has been promoting since 2012.

On that day, 37 volunteers from Shincheonji Volunteer Group (Gumi branch) received gloves and rubbish bags from the city council and divided the 7km stretch from Geumsan Intersection to Geumsan Mountain into two groups. The cleaning operation was carried out from 9am to 1pm. 

Soon-yi Kim (54 years old, female, Songjeong-dong, Gumi-city), a participating volunteer, said, “I will forever remember the day I helped clean out the river in the cool rain.”

Volunteers cleaned up the area around Geumcheon by collecting rubbish such as plastic bottles, scrap, fallen leaves and cigarette butts that had fallen into the river bed.

Won-ho Lee, manager of Shincheonji Volunteer Group (Gumi Branch), said, “Next month, and with the support of Gumi City, we plan to receive an EM soil ball and will conduct regular volunteer service once a month. We will carry out this movement out of love for the local community.”

Meanwhile, Gumi City Council is raising its measure of love for the local community by encouraging the voluntary participation of local businesses, public institutions, military bases, and social groups through the One Soil, One River of Love Movement, and is carrying out river purification activities in eight areas.

Shincheonji Volunteer Group (Gumi Branch) applied for the One Soil, One River of Love Movement in Gumi City in 2014, and in December 2015, it received the Gumi Mayor's Excellence Award in recognition of its leadership in improving the river's quality through its activities.

https://www.newscj.com/article/20220824580264