Water bottles, T-shirts and packets of salted nuts filled the registration table for the Westwood Community Blood Drive.

The drive – hosted in collaboration with the American Red Cross – united Bruins and Westwood community members to donate blood Jan. 21 at the University Cooperative Housing Association, a group of collectively owned residential buildings popular among international and graduate students. The blood drive sought to bolster ongoing medical needs heightened by the Los Angeles County fires, said Mitali Khedkar, a communications crew chief at the UCHA.

[Related: LA COUNTY FIRES]

“One blood donation can save at least three lives, and that’s the greatest cause, I feel,” she said.

Preparation for the event – which has been put on for four years in a row – begins four weeks in advance, Khedkar said. This process includes brainstorming the number of people who might attend and how to arrange volunteers, she added.

Rafayel Sekoyan, a biology student at Santa Monica College and co-op resident, said he became involved with making shelters through the Red Cross’ wildfire recovery efforts and was eager to volunteer with this drive.

“You got to keep the communal feeling alive before and after disasters,” he said.

Khedkar said she had to question whether to run the event as planned due to the uncertainty surrounding ongoing fires. However, she added that the UCHA decided to keep the event on to assist those who have been affected by the wildfires.

“We got to know the importance of blood donation in these times, where we can literally see the impact right in front of our eyes,” Khedkar said. “They’re going to take the blood samples to the patients who are actually needing it right now.”

[Related: Westwood Recreation Center provides shelter, essential resources amid LA fires]

Khedkar said volunteers at the drive took steps, including having snacks and water available, to make donors feel comfortable giving blood. Organizers also spread awareness about the required iron levels a donor must have to safely donate blood, she added.

Khedkar also said the blood drives often are run with the support of the UCLA community, adding that an estimated 50% of the blood donors are UCLA undergraduate students.

“We feel really proud neighbors of the UCLA campus, and we are proud of this community,” she said. “The collaboration and support that we get every year from the UCLA students is amazing.”

Khedkar’s team has focused on encouraging students to donate blood because the impact of these donations are often understated, she added.

“You don’t need to donate money or you don’t need to donate any asset,” she said. “As long as you are healthy enough, and you’re fit enough to donate the blood, you are always welcome for the blood donation.”