Yes, we know Jan. 1 marks the beginning of a new year, but once the ball has dropped and you’ve put away the champagne glasses and noise-makers, the celebration is over.
Or is it?
January is also a time to celebrate what many people are doing to help save lives – giving blood. Known nationwide as National Volunteer Blood Donor Month, January is known at Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center as Commit for Life Month.
As you can imagine, Commit for Life Month is a pretty special occasion around here. While giving blood shouldn’t be left to just one time a year – after all, donating on an ongoing basis is what Commit for Life is all about – it is a great time to remember why you donate blood, and to recommit to saving more lives.
From January through March, we’re asking donors to tell us why they Commit for Life. We started this promotion last year and got an overwhelming response. Some who wrote in had personally experienced a need, while others wrote that they simply loved helping others. Every story is unique.
Several donors who submitted their stories last year were included in the 2009 Commit for Life calendar. One of them, Christina Peavy, was actually a committed blood donor before the need became personal – but it reaffirmed her commitment all the same.
To celebrate the beginning of Commit for Life Month – and the new year – here is an excerpt from Christina’s story:
I have been a regular blood donor for years and a Commit for Life member since 2005. I never knew anyone close to me who had needed blood or blood products until September 2006. In September, my daughter gave birth to a beautiful little girl.
My daughter began feeling poorly, and only then did they discover that she had been hemorrhaging since the birth. It took two emergency surgeries to stop her hemorrhaging, and she received three units of blood to replace the blood she had lost.
My new granddaughter came very close to losing her mother that long night, and we all learned first-hand how important it is to continue giving blood regularly.
- Christina Peavy
Happy New Year from Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center!
Christina, left, is a proud blood donor and a proud grandmother today. Her daughter, Christa, needed three units of blood after Ava was born in September 2006.
