Cancer Survivor Don Davis Who Received 150 Transfusions Will Surprise and Thank Her
(Palm Harbor, FL, October 23, 2019) Cindy Redmond has been donating blood and platelets for almost 30 years in Tampa Bay. On Monday, October 28, she will achieve her 100 Gallon Donor Milestone, having helped to save hundreds of lives and families along the way! Cindy will be one of the select women to join the elite ranks of the less than 250 people who have given 100 gallons or more of blood in Florida since blood banking began during World War II!
Cindy Redmond 100 Gallon Donor Milestone Celebration
Monday, October 28
3:30p.m. – 5p.m.
OneBlood’s Palm Harbor Donor Center
33825 US Hwy. 19 N.
Palm Harbor, FL 34684
Cindy’s father was a regular blood donor and explained to her how blood could not be made in a laboratory and was always needed to save lives. So, when Cindy started college at USF she began to donate whole blood occasionally. In 1990, she started working at Pinellas County Utilities where the bloodmobiles visited regularly and began to give more often. At times she would go to a Donor Center to give and a staff member, upon seeing her great veins, encouraged her to begin donating platelets which can be given up to 24 times a year. So, every two weeks after work Cindy began to donate blood in this special way. Once, Cindy was asked to donate Granulocytes, which are white blood cells, for a child fighting an infection. She had to visit a different Donor Center to have that blood component drawn and in their lobby, she saw a red 55 gallon drum with some donor names on it. She decided then her goal was to reach 55 gallons, which then turned into 100 gallons! Cindy knows she has something that other people need and plans to keep donating platelets and encouraging others to give as well!
In April 2010, Don Davis was diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia, a very rare blood disorder. He began receiving chemotherapy, along with transfusions of red blood cells and platelets to replace those his body wasn’t making. This treatment did not work, so his only hope was to find a compatible donor for a stem cell transplant. While the search was on, he continued to receive the gifts of blood and platelets from our donors. Luckily, a young man from Germany was a marrow match and shared his special gift. Don received his transplant at Moffitt Cancer Center, along with follow up transfusions of more blood and platelet donations while he recovered. Altogether during his yearlong battle to survive, Don received around 100 units of red blood cells and 50 bags of platelets. His transplant transformed his blood type from O negative to A positive, which matched his new outlook on life. He will surprise Cindy to share his story and thank donors like her for giving second chances to patients like him.
Generally, healthy people age 16 or older who weigh at least 110 pounds can donate blood. All donors receive a wellness checkup including blood pressure, temperature, iron count, pulse and cholesterol screening, plus a surprise gift.
To learn more about the importance of blood donation and how donors can target the power of their blood type, visit oneblood.org or call 1.888.9DONATE (1.888.936.6283).
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OneBlood is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) community asset responsible for providing safe, available and affordable blood to more than 250 hospital partners and their patients throughout Florida and into areas of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. OneBlood distributes more than one million blood products annually, operates nearly 90 donor centers and deploys close to 200 of its signature Big Red Buses throughout its service area for blood drives. To learn more about OneBlood please visit www.oneblood.org.