Wednesday’s Inspiring Woman…Patty Richards. And the importance of giving the gift of life..
I often head up to our local fitness center to work out.
Last Friday I did for another reason. I went to donate blood.
Meet my new friend Patty…
She’s sitting there ready to dig into a great-looking burger with her daughter Jessica.
I used to see Patty lots at the Madison Fitness Center working out. But last Friday I saw Patty at the Fitness Center for another reason. There was a blood drive in honor of her daughter’s successful bone marrow transplant this fall.
Alright, as I am always honest on this blog…I’ll admit that Patty is one of those people I looked at in the gym from afar. (Nothing uncomfortable mind you) She is just a mother in midlife like me. Who seems to be doing it rather spectacularly. So the new “Push out of the Comfort Zone” me wanted to know about this inspiring woman.
Hi Patty…What do you do professionally?
I’m the office manager for BRECO Realty. Hmm. This must means she’s very organized.
Tell us about your family life?
I have two daughters. Jessica is my oldest and her younger sister, Tabby is 20 years old. This was Tabby’s first time donating blood and she was able to overcome her fear by putting the need of her sister and others before her own fear. Way to go, Tabby. That’s when we truly start to live — by pushing through fears that are holding us back from what we feel called to do.
David is my husband. He is the girls’ step dad and they have a great relationship. He was recruiting men at the gym to donate the past few weeks. Robert Moon is the girls’ father and he was at the blood drive all day Friday. And as engineer at Georgia DOT, he was recruiting men at the DOT office in Madison.
What are some of the statistics from last Friday’s donation?
42 units were collected at the Madison Fitness Center. Out of those 42 units, there were 6 units of just red cells — a process that takes the whole blood from the donor and runs it through a machine that pulls just the red cells from the blood and then returns the white cells, platlets and plasma to the donor. Wow. Now that is cool.
We had 47 donors to sign up to give. These ranged in ages from 17 to 83 — with 20 first time donors. Twenty first time donors. That’s awesome!
How has the importance of blood donating impacted you personally?
We were casual donors prior to Jessica, our oldest daughter, being diagnosed with leukemia. And then when we experienced the need for platelets (the clotting factor in blood) we became regular donors and worked at recruiting others to give.
The need for blood is so great and the process so relatively simple and painless that you’re really only committing to give of your time; nothing more than your body will replenish in a short time. Something that is so easy for us to give is a matter of lif an death for those who are needing the gift of blood whether because of treatment needed for cancer (as was in our case) or those involved in accidents or surgery.
Patty gave me some more interesting facts…
* The number one reason donor say they give blood is because they “want to help others.”
* The most common reasons people cite for not giving blood. “Never thought about it.” and “I don’t like needles.”
* Red Cross donors are 50% male and 50% female.
* One donation can save the lives of up to 3 people.
* People with O – are the universal donors. Their blood can be given to people of all blood types. And is often used in emergencies before the patent’s blood type is known.
* People with AB+ type blood are the universal donors of plasma, the liquid portion of blood. AB+ plasma is often used in emergencies, for newborns and for patients requiring massive transfusions.
* Donated platelets must be used within 5 days of collection — new donations are constantly needed.
* Less that 38 percent of the U. S. population is eligible to donate blood.
That last statistic makes me realize how important it is for those of us who can give — to give. For more facts on blood donation check out the American Red Cross site.
* If you are healthy, you can donate every 56 days.
Thanks Patty for taking the time to educate us on this most important subject. I must admit to letting the busyness of life and my own preoccupations get in the way of donating. Now that I have a better understanding of how critical it is to keep the blood supply up — I hope to become a regular donor.
A young woman after my own heart. I've never met an onion ring I didn't like either.
Now…because I couldn’t help but ask, (like I said she looks fab in our Pump-it-Up workouts) I asked about Patty to share her workout and diet habits…
I work out about four times a week. I try to take evening classes at the gym but I am also self-motivated enough to workout alone. My husband and I are pretty healthy eaters. We’ve eliminated processed sugars from our diet along with eating very little fat or processed foods. We drink anywhere from a half gallon to full gallon of water a day. What if you drink a gallon of coffee?
And we eat primarily fish or chicken (very little read meat) and never fried. Not even oysters..at the beach? Lots of fruits, vegetables and salads. No wonder you look so great.
Thanks so very much Patty for taking time out for this e-conversation. Your family will be in our prayers. Everyone is so thankful for Jessica’s good health. You and your family are an inspiration to all by staying strong in adversity and giving back to others.
