KUNR Youth Media

Reflecting On More Than A Decade Of Working At A Blood Bank: KUNR Youth Media

KUNR Public Radio | By Isabella LoConte

Published September 4, 2020 at 7:00 AM PDT

One woman pointing a recorder at another woman while sitting. — Isabella LoConte, interviewing her grandmother, Edith Scott.

Edith Scott worked in a blood bank for over 13 years, spending her career interviewing donors, taking blood, and getting to know her regular patients on a personal level. She retired in 2012, but she remembers her time fondly and still has a lot of stories to tell.

Her granddaughter, Isabella LoConte, a student with KUNR’s Youth Media program, sat down with her to talk about her time there.

ISABELLA LoCONTE: You've told me that you used to work at a blood bank for quite some time before retiring. Why did you decide to work at a blood bank?

EDITH SCOTT: When I moved back to Reno, I needed to find a job. And I found a job in the United Blood Services. And I worked there for almost 13 years. I loved it. It was the greatest job. I interviewed donors and then I also drew their blood. And still, after eight years of being retired, I still have some of my older donors ask about me and tell the girls that we still have lunch or dinner. And they tell me who has asked about me. I just tell him to tell them I said hello.

LoCONTE: Can you tell me one story you remember from working there?

SCOTT: I really enjoyed talking with all my donors because they were good people. And you get to know so many of them that I really liked. And she had what they call a baby donor. And there was one young boy that she came in and donated for him every two months because his body did not make iron. She donated for him from the time he was six weeks old or something like that. And he passed away when he was... I believe he was 18 when he passed away. And it really broke almost all of our hearts, but she is one of the nicest ladies that you ever meet.

Isabella LoConte is a student at the Academy of Arts, Careers and Technology in Reno, as well as a reporter for our youth media program, a special partnership with the Washoe County School District to train the next generation of journalists. Since the start of the pandemic, the program has met remotely, and students have not been reporting in the field to avoid the transmission of COVID-19.

Music by Podington Bear.

Learn more about the KUNR Youth Media program

Each fall and spring semester, our dedicated program coordinator partners with the WCSD educator to mentor a select group of high school interns. The internship classes are typically from 2:15 to 4:15 p.m. at the high school, providing a structured environment where students receive comprehensive instruction.

The students are taught radio journalism, broadcast journalism, and media production, gaining real-world professional experience that helps them develop career skills. Students work with media professionals to produce creative audio stories and elevate voices from our region.

As part of the program, students are offered the opportunity to tour KUNR’s facilities and the Reynolds School of Journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno, where they will have the chance to record their broadcasts under the guidance of the WCSD educator and the program coordinator.

This semester-long project is designed to facilitate the airing of the students' stories on KUNR and the publication of their work on KUNR.org. Through this experiential learning approach, students gain valuable insights into public media and develop practical skills using industry-standard equipment.

The KUNR Youth Media Coordinator plays a crucial role in ensuring that students receive scholarly guidance on the standards and practices associated with audio journalism production.

Our program is committed to fostering a safe and constructive learning environment for all participants. KUNR is dedicated to nurturing the creative ideas of students in the program and, prior to publication, KUNR’s Managing Editor reviews all submitted work to ensure that it aligns with KUNR’s established media standards and expectations.

This program was formerly known as Reno Youth Radio.