Kaywyn J.Beswick, R.N./Morrison American Red Cross Blood Drive Coordinator, submitted this report and photo of donor Lynn Reimer.
Thursday, July 21, 2016, was one of the hottest days of the year in Morrison, IL. It also was one of the greatest for lives saved for American Red Cross blood drives, as our numbers were “sizzling!” We had 101 degrees on the City Hall time-and-temperature thermometer. We had 52 great citizens come in to give of their time and blood products, in order to save 141 lives in need of blood products. How awesome is our terrific town?
I cannot ever express in the written/typed word how very proud I am of our wonderful community. You never fail to amaze me. The ever-faithful Kiwanis Club was our sponsor for the day and has been our July sponsor for the last eight years, since I have been Coordinator. Their service includes unloading and reloading the ARC truck before and after the drive; purchasing/preparing/serving the delicious food we offer donors after their donation; escorting donors from the donation loungers to the table; working the canteen table; pouring drinks; keeping cookie platters full; making sandwiches. I cannot tell you how much we depend on the Kiwanis Club members. They are very helpful with many things in the community. On July 21, they were Kris and Bart Bielema, Betty Jo (Harridge) Schmitt, Laveda and Len Ashlin, Lawrence “Ike” Isaacsen, Ron Finnicum, and Deb Stiefel.
Special thanks to Morrison United Methodist Church for graciously providing us–and Morrison Friends Food Pantry–with a place to call home, rent-free and utility-free. We cannot ever repay you. And, with much gratitude, a heartfelt thanks goes to my many volunteers that man the stations in the room. They come at the drop of a hat, with very little warning sometimes, when someone cancels at the last minute. They were Marian Dykema, Marcia Haag, Deb Wikoff, Ron Wiersema, Sandy Schroeder, Bridie Bartnicke, and Carole Patton. Thanks for your dedication!
Last, but certainly not least, I want to thank the blood donors themselves; without them, we could no longer host blood drives. You always come through when we are in desperate need of blood, especially in the summer months, when regular donors get busy and do not always give, if they are on vacation or traveling. There were seven double-red-cell donors, giving an equivalant of two units of packed red blood cells (RBC’s.) They were Tom Demay, Keith Wiersema, Jack Bland, Dave Stern, Ron Shank, Scott Vance, and one gentleman who did not want his name printed as a donor. Wonderful job, guys!
We had a first-time donor, Lisa Vanderlaan, who came in with her sister-in-law. Thank you, Lisa, for joining the ranks. Thank you, Renee Vanderlaan, for getting Lisa to come in with you. By the way, Renee was a two-gallon pin recipient. We awarded a total of seven pins! Keith Hamstra, also got a two-gallon pin; Callie Bush and Susan Noble, were given three-gallon pins; Beth Wroble received a four-gallon pin; John “Jack” Bland was granted an eight-gallon pin; Connie Swanson-DeSpain was recognized with a ten-gallon pin. These comrades have donated over 700 hours of time and saved from 704-to-768 lives in their blood-donor-lifetimes. Great accomplishment, pinned peeps!
The rest of our fabulous blood donors were Laura Smith, Sandra Huizenga, Stephanie Vavra, Jeff Wetzell, Jamie Dauphin, Su Mahoney, Lynn Reimer, Randy Kuehl, Kim Mulnix, Tony Fletcher, Craig Brady, Chris Hawkins, Joyce Hamstra, Joe R. Bielema, Kristine Honeycutt, Carolyn Aiken, Evan Haag, Jim Fisher, Brad Bielema, Marian Dykema, Steve Geerts, Kaywyn Beswick, Dick “Wink” Wieneke, Margaret Barr, Jim Prombo, Julie Brown, Brooke Newman, Nancy Shank, Ryan Sutton, Kari Forster, and nine other great folks who did not want their names printed in the newspaper or on www.thecity1.com website. I still know who you all are, and I appreciate you and your wonderful contributions.
Please join us for the next ARC blood drive on Thursday, September 15, from noon until 6:00 p.m., at Morrison United Methodist Church. It will be Football Season, so wear your favorite High School/College/NFL team jersey to get your name placed in a drawing.