DAGSBORO, Del. – The theme at the Blood Bank of Delmarva’s Dagsboro Donor Center on Tuesday, August 1 was all about family.
Susie Simpson was among the summer donors in the Dagsboro Donor Center on Tuesday, and she started donating because of her son.
“He had several transfusions when he was 18 years old,” Susie said. “He was up at A.I. duPont [Nemours Children’s Hospital] a lot. So, after that, I got into donating. I have to give back.”
Tara Benton could not agree more as she has a similar reason for donating blood. And she brought two of her children with her, daughter Savannah and son Keith.
“My [other] son had a lot of transfusions when he was a baby,” Tara said. “That helped him live, so it’s just to give back.”
Also in Dagsboro Tuesday was Christine Styles. Her father inspired her to donate for the first time with the American Red Cross when she was a 17-year-old high school student in New Jersey.
“I’ve been doing it for years,” Christine said. “My father was O positive and they always wanted him. I ended up with my mother’s blood (A positive). They would say, ‘We really want him, but you can come too,” she joked.
Continuing with the family theme at Dagsboro, we saw the mother-daughter duo of Carolyn Lupo and Emily Williams. We first met these lifesavers in January at the 24th annual Ocean City Blood Drive in Maryland. That was when Emily donated for the first time on January 23, with her mother there to support her.
Tuesday was Emily’s second time donating, and it was the 14th time for Carolyn. When they were done, Carolyn was already trying to set up their appointment for Ocean City in January 2024.
“I love that blood drive,” she said.
While Carolyn fluctuates between mobiles and the center, Deborah Long has decided the Dagsboro Donor Center is the place for her.
“I used to go to the Georgetown CHEER Center, but one of the girls told me about this place,” Deborah said. “So, I started coming here. I like it a lot better.”
Last but not least, Penelope Hackmann was among the five platelet donors who came into Dagsboro on Tuesday.
“I think it’s necessary, and I’m capable,” Penelope said. “So, I have the time and I think it’s a great cause. Everybody’s great here.”
Amen to that. Speaking of which, thank you to Supervisor, Collections Dawn West, Donor Registration Specialist April Miller, and Blood Collection Techs Mayra Colunga-Lopez, Mary Adkins and Peyton Brown for their assistance with photos and whatnot.
BBD Donor Specialist
Our volunteers!
