By Jackson Gaskins

Contributor

I am not and will never be a blood donor.  I am a blood recipient.

The gift of blood donation has been and always will be a huge factor in my life. I was born with a hereditary blood disorder known as spherocytosis. The disorder results in my body rejecting and destroying my own red blood cells.

This potentially debilitating condition has affected many of my family members, but so has the gift of blood donation. This is what inspires and motivates me to be involved with the blood drive at my school.

Blood donations have helped form and unite my family. My grandparents met when my grandmother was ill and in need of a blood transfusion. My grandfather responded to the request for donations to help her. My mother would not be here without blood donations. My life, and my sister’s life, were both saved because of blood donations.

[box_info]The American Red Cross will host a campus blood drive from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 27, in Kellogg Plaza. For details, call (858) 688-8349[/box_info]I knew I had received  blood transfusions, but it wasn’t until I was recovering from a month-long stay in the hospital that I became very aware of the importance of blood donations. I did not understand where the blood I received came from.

My mother took me to a blood drive being held at our local church to see the people who were giving blood and to show me what giving blood looked like. Before then, giving blood was something I could not visualize. When I saw the people I had seen in the grocery store or at church or at the park or at school gathered in the church, lying with needles in their arms and blood flowing into the familiar bags, I was overwhelmed with emotion and gratitude.

My sister had been seriously ill, and had just returned from yet another trip to the hospital. I was 8 years old, and the reality that I might lose her was frightening. Seeing all these people gathered in the church giving their blood gave me the reassurance that she would survive. I said thank you to all the people who were giving blood for saving our lives.  This little thank you made an impact on the donors and the blood drive organizers.

My family was later contacted by the BloodSource director who asked if we would allow them to tell our story. We  became poster children for BloodSource. Our pictures and stories are still used today to help encourage others to give blood. My sister’s picture is on the side of a donation bus, and articles had been written in the paper about how we are able to live full lives today.

People approach me all the time and say that they have seen my family’s picture in BloodSource locations, on the website or in posters and other advertisements around town and that because of our story they now give blood regularly. I learned at that early age that saying thank you and telling my story to others could make a difference to help others in need of blood.

I participated in the school blood drive because I wanted students and faculty members to know that donations like theirs are what allow me to be healthy and strong today, and so that they could put a face to their donation and truly understand the difference they are making in someone else’s life. Several donors came to me after the blood drive and said that they had been hesitant or afraid to donate, but that they were touched and inspired to do so after hearing me speak. They continued to say that they were going to continue to donate. The blood drive was such a success that there were more people wanting to donate than could be accommodated.

Speaking about my experience and thanking people for the life-saving donation of blood is something I consider a lifelong dedication. This is my way of giving back and paying something forward. I may not be able to give blood, but I can and will give my thanks.