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For many, it was a chance to renew old friendships and “give the gift of life,” as Roanoke Rapids resident Brenda Harrelson said. “It’s a good feeling. It just makes me feel good. I give the gift of life every 56 days.” That is the minimum amount of time one can wait before giving blood again.
For some local residents, donating blood is as much a part of their life as family and friends. Melvin L. Butler has given almost 40 gallons of his blood as of Tuesday. “I’ve been giving blood since 1955,” Butler said as he relaxed and enjoyed a slice of pizza after his turn on the lounge chair. “I’ve given so long they once took blood out of my arm and put it right into a guy lying on the table next to me,” He added with a laugh.
His friend Wayne Jordan has “only” given 17 gallons of his B-positive blood through the years. Both have been retired for some time and both have seen where their blood has saved lives.
Jordan, who worked for more than 40 years, has traveled all over the world, mostly on missionary trips. “I’ve loved every minute since retiring. I’ve been to Italy, Australia, Cambodia, Israel, just all over the place.” But he seldom misses his chance to give blood.
Jordan saw the need for blood firsthand many years ago when one of his grandchildren was suffering from leukemia. That child, Brian Michael Jordan, eventually died from the blood disease and Jordan has made it his mission to make sure his blood is out there for all who need it.
“I went to Weldon once,” said Butler, breaking in on his friend with a laugh, “I just like to help children. I do all I can for the Children’s Miracle Network and the children’s hospital in Greenville. They say each pint of my blood helps three children with rare blood diseases, so this is a great way to help where it’s needed.”
Velma Hux is not paid for what she does for the American Red Cross, but she was hard at work all day. She started out volunteering whenever the American Red Cross Bloodmobile came to town. Now she organizes all the local volunteers and performs whatever needs to be done on the busy blood drive days like yesterday.
“I decided this could be something I could help with,” Hux said as she restocked the food, crackers and sodas for the people making donations. “I wanted to make a difference and I really think this does.” When she finally took a break, she did it lying on one of the Red Cross lounges, giving blood herself.
For those that haven’t given blood in a while, things have changed quite a bit. The advent of blood-borne diseases like HIV-AIDS, Hepatitis B & C and Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease to name just a few, caused a huge problem for all blood-collecting agencies like the American Red Cross, but important changes were made to protect the nation’s blood supplies. Those changes are quickly evident as soon as one signs in to donate.
First time volunteer Kristy Stanfield was manning the sign-in table yesterday, asking everyone if they were making a donation for the first time or whether they had an identification card issued by the American Red Cross. If they didn’t have a card, it was lesson time.
The process of donating blood
The first time one donates blood to the Red Cross, they are signed in and given a short lesson on the importance of keeping the nation’s blood supply safe from blood-borne diseases and a list of things that should disqualify one from donating their blood.
Once the volunteer donor decides to continue with the donation, they are taken to another paid American Red Cross processor who takes a blood sample to quickly test their blood to make sure it is safe for them to donate blood. They are left alone to answer intimate, personal questions into a computer about their lifestyle and travel history, which according the Red Cross, could have exposed them to any of the diseases.
Once they have answered the questions, donors are asked to read back the identification number that is shown on a sheet they keep with them. That number is recorded on all the containers of their blood. They are taken to another waiting area where they are given their actual blood containers, four of them in all, which are kept with them until they actually hand the containers to the professional who takes their blood.
Once called upon, the donor lays down on a comfortable beach-type lounge, where they are again asked to read the numbers from their identification sheet to the person who will take their blood. Only then will a needle actually be put into their arm and blood taken, and then only after two separate scrubs are performed on the arm chosen to donate blood from.
The actual plastic bag the blood drains into, one of the four, is placed on a scale, where between 586 and 691 grams, or approximately a pint of the donor’s blood is collected. The blood will eventually be separated into the other three bags, but that is long after the donor is gone. For one donor, the entire blood collection took only eight minutes.
After the collection process is over, the donor and their blood part ways. The donor is taken to a table and brought food and a drink of their choice, while their blood and collection bags are cataloged and put on ice. The interaction with the paid professionals is over at that point.
The donor has an instruction sheet and card explaining what to do if problems should arise, but undesirable reactions are uncommon said Hux, who has overseen donors for quite a while.
According to the American Red Cross workers, the Valley has always responded well to local blood drives and yesterday was another example. The goal of 60 pints of blood was almost met by 2:30 in the afternoon. “Oh yeah, we’ll definitely make it,” said Patrina, one of the professional American Red Cross workers, as she looked over the lines waiting to come to her donation station.
With local residents like Jordan, Butler and Harrelson, and volunteers like Hux, Stanfield and many others, this area is known for stepping up to ensure a supply of blood.
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