Gratitude Friday 7 25 25 - The Fifty Gallon Club

A few weeks back, I became a member of a rather distinct and unique club, I reached my fifty-gallon goal for blood donation. It was a great morning! The percentage of the US population eligible to donate blood is estimated at 62%, but only 3% of the eligible population actually donates annually. While there are roughly 6.8 million blood donors in the US each year, the portion of those who reach 50 gallons is a tiny fraction of that less than one percent of the 3% who donate blood. The amazing people at Miller Keystone pulled out all the stops, balloons, banners, a card, yummy cupcakes, a certificate and the signing of the red fifty-gallon club barrel. I added my illegible signature on the sweet spot right below the fifty-gallon club emblem.

This 50-gallon thing was a long-term personal goal. I started donating at age 22 and set smaller goals of five, then ten gallons. It took me 25 years to get to 25 gallons as I was donating whole blood intermittently. At some point, I just made a decision to donate platelets and plasma more intentionally which I do every two weeks.

One of the reasons I donate blood was that my father role modeled it for me. I recall him donating blood at the Miller Blood Center located at Muhlenberg Hospital next to the Westgate Mall in Bethlehem in the early 1970s. He had a rare blood type. At times, they would call him up him for an emergency donation. Once I recall that he changed some plans we had so he could do so. There was a young girl who needed surgery, and they needed the blood that day, so he went in and donated it to help this child he never met. I was proud of him. I remember him telling me that he started to donate blood while serving in the Army during the Korean War.

I have a rare type too, and I first started donating blood in the mid 1980’s during my first summer in recovery. One of the foundations of recovery, at least for many of us, is service to others. It was a way for me to help a community that in many ways I had harmed and to also help a community who gave me a second chance at life. Donating is part of who I am, at least as long as I can. It is just something I do. As W. H. Auden famously said, “We are all here on earth to help others; what on earth the others are here for I don't know.”

All joking aside, on the other side of these donations are burn victims, people who have been in accidents, people getting oncology services and others who need these blood products. Perhaps the one thing that I think about most often is how grateful I am far be on this side of the donation experience. You just never know.

Nearly 40 years later, one thing that is really apparent to me is that Miller Keystone is such a great organization. Donating blood regularly connects me to their staff and volunteers. Every single person I have met in their centers over the years has a service mentality. They know that the work they do is special. One of my favorite recent memories was at the Hamilton Center in Allentown (you can schedule here). It was Thanksgiving 2024, and the staff shared homecooked food with me. There was rice and beans and pastelillos and a few things I don’t know what they were called but tasted amazing. It is like a big family. It was really nice.

On July 10^th, I went in and for this donation, Julie came in and donated a whole unit so she could celebrate with me. They had a card, a certificate and some yummy cupcakes and my 50-gallon pin. Lina Barbieri, who does their philanthropy. I know her from outside the center as we serve on a board together and Yvonne Vallone their Donor Recruitment Coordinator who I have known since I was 13 both came out early on a Sunday morning to celebrate with me. We took pictures with all the staff. I got to sign the red 50-gallon club barrel and they invited me to attend a donor appreciation event. It all meant a lot to me. I do not donate blood for the cookies or pins but it feels really good to meet a goal and be celebrated. I did it!

If you are thinking about donating, please do. I personally think that life is more rewarding when I focus on what I can do for others rather than simply things that make my life comfortable. If you are in the Lehigh Valley, consider Miller Keystone, It is easy, painless and at least for me oddly relaxing. Here is a national link to find a place.

So, what is next? I am aiming for 75 gallons. I am grateful for the opportunity to have a new goal to strive for.

What are you grateful for today?