“One person can make a difference, and everyone should try” -John F. Kennedy
Over the past two years, I have hosted five blood drives at my home with ConnectLife. I love it! The mobile blood bus pulls up to my neighborhood, and it's the best feeling knowing we are making a difference. I am an RN who works acute care as a medical-surgical nurse at the bedside, and I currently work at the VA.
I have been a blood donor since I was in high school, and I always knew of the importance of giving the gift of life. However, after witnessing first-hand the severity of blood shortages, especially during and immediately following the pandemic - I felt compelled to do more.
Parameters for patients that would typically require transfusion were changing because we simply didn’t have enough blood. It was after those experiences that I decided to start to host my own blood drives, and it has been so rewarding. I have absolutely loved getting to know the staff that work the drives. We have so much fun, and overall donating blood with ConnectLife has been such a wonderful experience.
I feel as though I’m helping to make a small difference in my community. Just this past January, my son who was only two at the time, was hospitalized for nine days at Oishei Children’s Hospital, and needed a blood product, which made my passion for donating even greater. Being a nurse and a mom has given me two very different and powerful perspectives on why I do what I do!
I hosted my fifth blood drive this month, and my five-year-old Charlotte and three-year-old Theo love helping out at the blood drives and grabbing some snacks on the ConnectLife bus! I love teaching them about why we do what we do for others.
I will be hosting my next blood drive the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Thank you to the ConnectLife team for all you do to help save lives in Western New York.
- Sarah Dempsey
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