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Mary C. of Newark, DE is no stranger to Blood Bank of Delmarva. Her mom Helene has worked as a phlebotomist there for more than 20 years. Mary's husband Ed is a longtime "LifeSaver" donor. But even though she understood the Blood Bank's role in the community, Mary never thought she'd one day owe her life to local blood donors.

PICTURED: Mary's mom Helene, a Blood Bank phlebotomist, with newborn Brian

A few days after being released from the hospital with her newborn son Brian in 1993, Mary C. of Newark, DE experienced several sudden life-threatening complications and she began bleeding - ultimately losing a considerable amount of blood. At the time, Mary was home alone with 3-day-old Brian.

PICTURED: Newborn Brian in 1993

"When I realized that the bleeding was not going to stop, I grabbed the phone and called my doctor," Mary said. "Within 45 minutes, I lost about 4 pints of blood."

Mary was rushed to the Emergency Room at Christiana Hospital.

"It was a surreal moment for me. I had lost so much blood, and I couldn't see anyone but I could hear them," Mary said. "I received a blood transfusion immediately and as the blood went in I could feel myself getting better."

Thanks to the selfless acts of blood donors, Mary was able to fully recover and go home to her family.

PICTURED: The Coyle Family (Brian, Mary, Ed, and Andy)

Donor began giving platelets twice a month after wife was diagnosed with leukemia

NEWARK, DE - 57-year-old Bob Moley of Wilmington, Delaware made his 200th platelet donation at the Blood Bank of Delmarva's Christiana Center on Saturday, April 19. There are currently only 4 other platelet donors in the Blood Bank database who have donated more than 200 times.

"I've been donating platelets for nearly 20 years," Moley said. "But after my wife Sharon was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) five years ago, I began donating as often as I could... which is every two weeks."

A platelet donation (called plateletpheresis) provides about 10 times more platelets than a regular blood donation. Platelets are a part of blood critically needed to treat people with leukemia or cancer. During plateletpheresis, the donor's blood passes through a machine that separates the platelets from the blood and returns the other components to the donor. The process takes about 90 minutes.

"My wife has been in remission ever since a successful bone marrow transplant and I have a lot to be grateful for," Moley said. "I can't think of a better way to give back to the community than by donating blood."