Editor’s note: Kaywyn J. Beswick, R.N./American Red Cross Blood Drive Coordinator, submitted this report.
It was a sunny day for the spring American Red Cross Blood Drive of 2018. Friday, March 9, was the date, and Morrison United Methodist Church, 200 W. Lincolnway, Morrison, IL, was the place. Our sponsor was Bethesda Lutheran Church, moving from their usual month of May to March. Thank you for accommodating our needs. The women who helped with purchasing, preparing, and serving the delicious lunch were Nancy Pannier, Andrea Dalton, Mona Milder, Carol Oncken, Olivia Nielsen, Monica Anderson, and Marcia Haag. The women who helped at the stations throughout the room were Marcia Haag, Mona Milder, Carol Oncken, Marian Dykema, Carole Patton, Sandy Schroeder, Bridie Bartnicke, and Marilyn Akker. Thanks for your dependability! So much gratitude goes out to Morrison United Methodist Church, for allowing us to use your great facility, with a spacious hall, good parking, and plenty of restrooms, to host the ARC blood drives. I appreciate your faithfulness.
There were six double-red-cell donors who came to donate, but only two of them wanted their names published. They were Keith Wiersema and Ron Shank. Thank you, gentlemen, for your continued support. We had one donor receive a ten-gallon pin in the mail; it was Kaywyn Beswick. The ARC has changed the process of distribution of gallon pins. They will be mailing them to the donor’s home address now, instead of being handed out at the blood drives. I will still recognize the individuals, if they make it known that they have received one.
The completed list of donors who came out is as follows: Julie Damhoff, Dale Beswick, Linda Vos, Randy Kuehl, Stephanie Vavra, Mary Latwesen, Bryan Vogel, Steve Miley, Lisa Boles, Susan Ottens, Keith Hamstra, Jennifer Bonkoski, Brad Bielema, Janet Manchester, Renee Vanderlaan, Mark Schuler, Pam Shank, Chris Hawkins, Bill Anderson, Thomas Rosenbaum, Evan Haag, Judy McCulloh, Carolyn Aiken, Leon VanKampen, Vicki Carroll, Ron Shank, Beth Wroble, Connie Swanson-DeSpain, Kari Forster, and 14 other men and women who did not want their names published as a blood donor. (I still know who you are, and we appreciate you all, even if you do not want to be given the credit.)
The next ARC blood drive will be the “Jen Banks Memorial Blood Drive,” on Saturday, May 5, with different times and location. I will not be involved in coordinating this blood drive. The family and friends of Jennifer (Armstrong) Banks will be coordinating the drive. It will be at the SuperWash Headquarters Building, 707 W. Lincolnway, Morrison, IL, behind the Shell Station/Family Chef Restaurant, and will run from 8:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.
Donors can donate at this blood drive and then be eligible to donate again, at the next ARC drive in July at Morrison United Methodist Church. We planned this, so that our regular donors could stay on track to donate six times a year on schedule.
If a donor ever gets deferred at a drive, Resthave Home also holds ARC drives regularly throughout the year, so donors can jump into theirs and continue helping save lives.
The summer ARC drive at Morrison United Methodist Church will be Thursday, July 19, from noon to 6:00 p.m. Our Donor Representative, Janet Jarvis, has heard and has listened. We will be going back to Thursdays, as several people reported to her that they prefer Thursdays over Fridays. Kunes Country Auto Group of Morrison will be the July sponsor.
Bring a neighbor, coworker, spouse, or friend. Join the ranks of blood donors. Become a lifesaver!