I know it usually helps, but this time I know for sure. The community blood bank just called to tell me the blood from my last donation in June went to a leukemia patient named “John.” They are featuring him as their latest donor story and are holding a meet & greet for people whose blood went to him. I plan to go if it works with my schedule.
I didn’t know a blood donor’s info was kept, let alone kept for the purpose of throwing a party when your donation is used. Very cool!
Congratulations on a successful contribution!
Well damn! I didn’t know we could possibly get good news like this from donating blood. I donate regularly but now I will be waiting for the call.
Good on you! 
Yeah, I didn’t know either. I donate fairly often and it’s certainly never happened before. Now I’m getting paranoid and thinking it’s some kind of scam… Nah, not really. There’s supposed to be TV and radio folks there doing stories on the guy and promoting the blood center, so it’ll be a good cause.
Sounds like a great promotion to get new people to donate. I work in oncology and newly diagnosed patients often have relatives who want to know if there’s anything they can do to help. We always suggest they donate blood. It won’t go to their nearest and dearest but there’s always a huge demand and giving blood is definitely a way to help.
Bonus points if you’re a minority and the recipient turns out to be racist! Even better if he doesn’t realize your race until the cameras are rolling.
(Just kiddin’. Ya did good anyway, even if it disappointingly turns out he’s a nice guy who’s appropriately grateful.)
That’s funny… maybe I need a trip to the costume shop so I could show up in some frightening disguise…
Open pus-oozing sores! Open pus-oozing sores!
Fake track marks… joint behind the ear…
I’m surprised this wasn’t confidential on both sides.
It pretty much was. I was contacted by the blood center directly, asking if I was interested. If I am, I have to sign release forms. So did the donee.
Well that’s nice. My blood usually has alcohol in it.
I’ve been donating blood for many years (I have an appointment in a couple of weeks which will be my third time this year) and have never gotten a call like that. I don’t think that I’d show up to be on camera but it would be cool to know where my blood went.
Wasn’t that an episode of All in the Family?
MASH, I think. IIRC Hawkeye even painted the guy a little brown before waking him up and giving his the stern lecture about the guy who discovered blood types dying because white hospitals wouldn’t help him.
All In The Family’s tolerance episode was about Archie saving a woman who needed mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, only to discover it was a MtoF cross-dresser.
haha, MeanOldLady, you make it sound like that’s a *bad *thing.
Donating blood in my family was sort of a rite of passage into adulthood. My mother’s life was saved more than once by blood donations. Her type was O negative, and donors were rare at the time, so she stressed that it was important for all of us to give.
However, I didn’t donate as often as I should have-- I could have done so hundreds of times over the years, but one does get caught up in life’s chores and pleasures. I do have a pin for my 35th donation but was only able to give twice after that because of some health issues that arose.
Donating blood is the easiest way to become some (unknown) person’s hero. It’s cool that you got to “see” the impact of your gift, Southern Yankee.