Archives for November 2009

Blood Centers of the Pacific is thankful for… - 2009 11 25

I’m thankful for working for an organization that values community service. - Lisa Bloch, Director of Communications

I am extremely thankful for having such easy going, persistent, and energetic platelet donors. Without them, I’d have a really difficult time waking up and coming to work in the morning! - Amy Guan, Apheresis Coordinator

I am thankful for all the staff I work with at the Shasta Blood Center because they are so thoughtful and kind. They are the best people ever. - Jeanette Maxwell, Receptionist, Shasta Blood Center

I’m thankful for all the coordinators that I have worked with over my 37 years at the blood bank. It is an “extra” job for them and they do it willingily. Also thankful for all the people that donate on my drives.  They have helped save so many lives. To those who try, and those who donate, Happy Thanksgiving! - Gertrude Stopper, Account Representative, Peninsula Region

I’m thankful for the excellent relationship we have with our hospitals that has been developed and maintained by our Reference Lab, Hospital Services, and Technical Operations departments. - Kim-Anh Nguyen, MD, Medical Director

I am thankful for all the wonderful and hardworking staff we have. - Nora Hirschler, MD, President

I am thankful and fortunate to have met so many donors and volunteers who unselfishly give of their time and of themselves. They serve as my constant reminders that: We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give (Winston Churchill). Oh, and of course, I’m also thankful for that “never empty” jar of sweet treats in my office. - Angela Woon, Communications Specialist

I’m thankful for the great lab staff at Irwin Center and in Redding who work 24/7 to weigh, filter, sample, test, spin, freeze, wash and label so that we have quality blood components to provide for our hospitals. - Denise DuBay, Director of Technical Operations

I’m thankful for the whole Apheresis staff and all their hard work.  Without them we would be “plate less!” - Vanessa Kamekona, Donations Coordinator

I am thankful for our registrars here at the Irwin Center who greet the donors with a warm smile everyday.  They’re always there to answer any questions or concerns that donors may have about donating.  I think when you walk into a place of business (especially a blood center) and you’re greeted by such friendly people, it puts you at ease! - Syeeda Carson, Special Procedures Representative

I’m thankful for the volunteers who share their time to volunteer for BCP. - Debbie Bingham, Supervisor, Volunteers

I am thankful for all my East Bay donors, many of whom were first-time donors and new to this noble and rewarding community service and vital cause. Their enthusiasm and compassion in helping to save lives is greatly appreciated and makes my work very rewarding!  - Wendy Theisen, Account Representative, East Bay Region

I am thankful for my team of trainers: Denise in Shasta, Patricia in Peninsula, Amy and Kathryn in Fairfield and Anna in San Francisco….they keep the staff up to date and on their toes! - Alana Tupasi, Training Manager /Customer Service

I’m thankful for fellow co-workers who are easy to work with and are responsive to your needs. - Neil Grant, Department Assistant II, Mobile Operations

I am thankful for the many volunteer blood drive coordinators who understand the importance of what they do and take their jobs seriously, and all donors who are everyday heroes. Thank you to each and every one of you. - Jeanne Nielsen, Account Representative, Marin County Region

I’m thankful for the 187 emails that I’ve received today. It gives me great comfort knowing that I’m so needed.  Happy Turkey Day! - Craig Anderson, Director of Facilities

I am thankful for all the donors who come to our mobile blood drives and donate their blood.  Their time and effort help us make our jobs easier but their donations save lives in the community in which we all live. - Paula Butterfield, Account Representative, North Bay Region

I am thankful to the many donors who regularly come in to get pricked and spend their valuable time to donate their blood to save others they may not know.  This is the greatest form of giving.  I am also thankful that this form of divine giving has created and sustained employment opportunities to the many - that includes me.  Thank you. - Sam Waran, Director of Information Technology

I’m thankful for all the donors who come in the rain, in the sunshine, on their day off, during work hours, when it would nice to sleep in, when it’s cold out, when the Giants and 49ers are on TV and winning, to give someone another tomorrow! - Don Burghardt, Director of Donor Recruitment

I am thankful for the good spirits of our donors, their good deeds improve all of our lives. - Raina H. Snyder, Donor Services Coordinator

I’m thankful for the opportunity to come back and work at BCP as a supervisor, realizing how much I love the work that we do in Donor Recruitment.  We have so many committed coordinators who truly understand the importance of blood donation and work so hard to make their blood drives successful.  They are inspiring, rarely giving up despite the countless challenges they face. - Christina Mihalas, Field Supervisor

My mother was a very unstable diabetic; she was unable to get healthcare insurance at any price and lived several years of her life in fear of losing everything. For my mother and the millions like her I am thankful for those who are trying to affect healthcare reform. - Richard Harveston, Director of Hospital Services

I am thankful for the companies who support our blood drives, the coordinators at those companies who work so hard to make their drives a success and for the donors at those companies who take time out of their very busy days to help save the lives of others! - JoEllen Myslik, Account Representative, San Francisco Region

I am thankful to have a job, a wonderful family, good health and much happiness in my life. - Denise Sobiek, Nurse, Napa Center

I am thankful for the cheerful, knowledgeable, friendly staff at the hospitals who make it a pleasure to send them life-saving blood components.  I’m also thankful for the Hospital Services drivers who go out of their way to get precious blood to our hospitals quickly. - Niles Dolbeare, Distribution Technician

I am thankful for our Facebook fans, our Twitter followers, our blog readers, our Flickr group members, and all the other ways in which people communicate with us in the online world. Nothing makes my day like a comment on our Facebook wall or a retweet because it means we get to connect with you in a new way. - Ashley Messick, Social Media Specialist

Thank YOU to all our blood donors, volunteers, coordinators, and all who support the important, life-saving work that we have the privilege to do here at Blood Centers of the Pacific!

It Truly is a Wonderful Life - 2009 11 23

by Lauren Larsen, grateful blood recipient, memoir junkie, and master PacMan player.

I’ve kept a personal journal for more than 35 years now.  My first—filled with loopy handwriting and circles dotting each “i”—is gold and has a little lock and key to safeguard the juicy secrets of a twelve-year-old. Mischelle is my best friend.  Or, I promise to stop picking my nose this year. Or, I like Kevin, Don, Charlie.

Ten years ago—around this time, my journal spoke of all the goodness in my life.  My husband, Jeff, had just sold his small technology company (yes, five months before the crash).  We’d begun our search to buy a home in Noe Valley, our first (1500 Square feet costs how much?).  And we were expecting our first child—a girl we’d already named Clare after the angel in my favorite movie, It’s a Wonderful Life.  The last journal entry before my daughter’s birth, reads: I’m getting mentally prepped for Clare’s delivery, which I predict will be easy. I LOVE BEING PREGNANT.

Shortly after writing that, my pregnancy took a turn for the worse and landed me in the intensive care unit after an emergency c-section to save my baby’s life.  Round-the-clock blood transfusions sustained me for six weeks, while my body decided whether it wanted to live or die.  Eventually, my organs began working again, my bleeding issues subsided, and I left the hospital.  At two months old, baby Clare came home from her uncle’s house in Southern California, where she’d been living since she was five days old.  We were, at last, a family.

This Thanksgiving, as with every Thanksgiving since my illness, you can bet my journal will be packed with gratitude, not only for my little family—Jeff, Clare and our three dogs, but for those we now consider family—the more than 200 complete strangers who took the time to roll up their sleeves at Blood Centers of the Pacific to help a new mom in need.  Blood donors are angels, pure and simple.  And they prove time and time again that it truly is a wonderful life.

Thank you, blood donors.

For more on Lauren’s story view this wonderful video thanks to In The Telling and Johnson & Johnson.