Saving Lives: One Pint at a Time
by Michelle O’Neal; originally published in the Spring 2025 Good News
Village Presbyterian Church partners with the Community Blood Center to host at least four blood drives each year on our campuses. We’ve done it for so many years, maybe you’ve tuned out the messaging and the reminders. Why do we care so much about this ministry? Let’s talk about it.
Blood donation basics:
- Every two seconds, someone needs blood.
- 1 out of every 3 people will need a blood donation in their lifetime.
- 62% of Americans are eligible to donate, but only 3% do.
- The average adult has 9-12 pints of blood—1 pint is given in a whole blood donation.
- Blood is typically separated into three unique components: platelets, red cells, and plasma. Each delivers a lifesaving benefit.
- Blood components cannot be synthetically made—there is no substitute.
- O+ is the most common blood type in the U.S.
- AB- is the least common blood type in the U.S.
Who needs blood?
- Burn victims
- Trauma victims
- Leukemia patients
- Cardiac surgery patients
- Organ and bone marrow transplant recipients
- Premature infants
- People battling cancer, sickle cell disease, kidney disease, anemia, and individuals with bleeding disorders
Blood donation has had a personal impact on people YOU know.
Ann Colston: “My brother started donating when he was in college more than 50 years ago. In my late twenties, I started as a volunteer—manually shaking the blood bags. I finally gained the courage to donate and have done so regularly for about 30 years. About seven years ago, my brother was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a cancer of the blood. While he could no longer donate, he has been the recipient of many transfusions while he battled the disease. I have witnessed first-hand the benefit of our donations through the years. We did this because we could. And, it was the good that was ours to do.”
Walt Tegtmeier: “I would volunteer for almost anything to get out of an hour of high school, even if it involved someone sticking a needle in my arm. I’ve donated more than 6 gallons of blood since, though my reasons have changed over the years. My late father, Dr. Gary Tegtmeier, spent most of his 37-year career screening donated blood for infectious diseases before it was shipped out to hospitals in the Community Blood Center’s 40-county area. I worked summers driving trucks to mobile sites, setting up in places like Village Church, tearing down and loading everything up—boxes of blood on ice, included—for the drive back to 4040 Main. I never knew where that blood would wind up or met anyone who received it. That changed in 2019 when my dad told us he had acute myeloid leukemia and only 3-6 months to live. Thankfully, it turned out to be 17 months. When chemotherapy stopped working, the platelet infusions he received gave him the strength and energy to make the most of the time he had left—my son’s baseball games, my daughter’s choral concerts, KC Symphony performances, and time to walk his beloved prairie. Since then, every time I donate whole blood, ‘double reds,’ or platelets, I think of how precious those final weeks were to him, to me, and to everyone who loved him.”
Want to help? Give blood on April 22.
Give blood next Tuesday, April 22, between 1 and 6 p.m. at the Mission Campus. You’ll enter at the South entrance and turn right at the reception desk. Walk-ins are welcome, but you are encouraged to reserve a time slot so you don’t have to wait. Questions? Email Rev. Zach Walker, pastor for missions.
“I have given blood at Village Presbyterian for several years now. It’s easy to sign up online or pop in on the given day. The people are very quick getting me registered and in a chair. It is a little respite in the day! I am thankful that if I or a loved one would be in need, the Community Blood Center would provide that valuable resource.” – Village member Susan