As I attempt not to focus on a donor telling me he/she is just too busy - or simply uninterested – I 
find myself thinking about all the folks out there who will miss out on the benefit of this missed blood donation. Is it a patient having surgery? Is it a baby who’s dying and needs help? Is it someone going through chemotherapy? My focus is on those who have received transfusions for one reason or another.
find myself thinking about all the folks out there who will miss out on the benefit of this missed blood donation. Is it a patient having surgery? Is it a baby who’s dying and needs help? Is it someone going through chemotherapy? My focus is on those who have received transfusions for one reason or another.Debra Klecan was fortunate enough to not only survive a horrific car accident, but also to receive blood from several generous donors. She was involved in an accident caused by a drunk driver (who died at the scene) and lost a lot of blood. Thankfully, there was a supply of blood on the shelves for her!
Then there’s the story of another woman, by the name of Judith Jones, who lives in Australia. She discovered that she had a disease that would be fatal to an unborn child. She lost four children due to this disease, before she was diagnosed. Thanks to miraculous connections and numerous blood transfusions she was able to birth a live baby! (It took 12 donors and countless transfusions to keep her baby alive in the womb.) She also donates blood to save the lives of other babies!
Fela Brannen receives frequent blood transfusions in her ongoing fight against Lupus, an autoimmune disease that left her with Hemolytic Anemia. She would like blood donors to know how thankful she is for their gift of life.
Carlos Lanz was robbed at gunpoint and left for dead. Without a blood transfusion, he wouldn’t be here today. “Someone donated blood to save my life. Because of you, I can enjoy life with my wife and my children,” he says. This, is his incredible story.
This last video is also a story of triumph:
Josef Wood, the cutest little bundle of 4-year-old (as of this video) energy you’ll ever see, has Aplastic Anemia. His case was brought on by Epstein Bar, so blood transfusions have been an essential part of this little man’s life! Around his 5th birthday, his body began to make red blood cells on its own, and by June last year he was in full remission!
I researched and found a great deal of stories for this post, but these were my favorites. I prefer to use video when telling another person’s story, most of the time, because it’s more powerful to see the face behind the story than to just read about it.
Have you come across any touching recipient stories? If so, please share!
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Great blog Melissa! I wish there was some way to make donors more aware exactly how much of an impact they have on someone’s life. Hopefully this helps.
Great examples, Melissa. How many stories did you go through before you chose these ones?
(When I clicked on Judith’s page I got an error. Maybe it’s just my computer but maybe you should have Tim check to make sure the link still exists??)