Tiffany Hartkemeyer has been donating blood since high school. Tuesday afternoon, she donated again.

Throughout the week, the fall blood drive — funded by Iowa State’s InterFraternity Council and Collegiate Panhellenic Council — has been taking place in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union.

Hartkemeyer said donating only took about 30 minutes.

“It’s such a good cause,” Hartkemeyer said.

“It’s a little way that you can really affect other people. I saved three lives today; how many people can say that?”

Hartkemeyer, senior in journalism and mass communication, was one of more than 600 people who donated Monday and Tuesday.

Lindsey Schmitt, sophomore in agricultural education, said she decided to donate to help other people.

“If I were in need of blood, I’d appreciate the time someone would give to donate for me,” she said.

The drive was organized by a group of 35 students, led in part by Becah Hoffman, senior in chemical engineering. Hoffman said more than five blood donation centers came to Ames to collect donations.

Some centers have certain requirements for donors before they can give blood, Hoffman said.

She said centers located in Cedar Rapids have different regulations on tattoos and piercings than those in Des Moines.

Hoffman said this is her fifth blood drive.

In past years, the committee has seen 1,800 students go through the line and earn a total of 1,700 pints of blood, Hoffman said.

“Our goal this year is to get 1,850 pints,” she said.

So far, Hoffman said, the blood drive is going well. Collections are meeting daily goals.

She said approximately 650 people have donated so far.

Hoffman said donation centers from other states have set up at Iowa State to collect donations for their state.

The blood drive will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday and from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday.

For more information, go to the blood drive’s Web site at www.stuorg.iastate.edu/bd/.