Armed Service Blood Bank Center hosts a blood drive from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 30 at the Chapel Support Center. The blood collected from the drive goes directly to aid wounded servicemembers in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

Interested donors (ages 17 and older) should weigh at least 110 pounds, have been feeling well for at least three days, be well hydrated and have eaten something prior to donating.

According to Victor Shermer with the ASBBC, the goal is to top the previous record of 56 units, which set at a blood drive at McChord earlier this year.

All of the blood donated will go to military members. After the quota for the blood headed to the area of responsibility is met, the remaining units will go to military hospitals in the Pacific Northwest.

For more donation guidelines and to check eligibility, visit www.militarylifeforce.com

On Friday, I had the pleasure of attending a military family support summit at the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center. The summit provided a great forum for educators, community leaders and private agencies to get together and collaborate on ideas and resources to support military families.

The morning panel featured a group of military teens who passed the microphone down the line answering a slew of questions designed to tap into subjects such as what it's like to be a military child, challenges each face when they change schools, how school administrators can better help incoming students and how each deal with their emotions when a parent is deployed.

Although some of the teens clearly weren't used to speaking in large groups(especially growing up in the age of MySpace and Facebook), I was impressed with how each one responded to the different questions.

When asked how she coped with her father's deployment, one teen responded, "I don't see it as coping — I see it as a part of my life and a part of our family."

Another teen said that while her and her older siblings were able to connect with their father on his deployment through letters and e-mails, she said her youngest sister (around age 5) was able to connect better with where her dad was and what he was doing through a gift from the country he sent her.

The panel was also emotional, as another teen said that one the most effective things a teacher can do to see how they are doing during a deployment is to listen.

"It can make our day," he said.

Another girl chimed in: "A hug can go a long way."