Recently, as most of you know, a senseless tragedy unfolded at Fort Hood, resulting in the deaths of Soldiers and civilians, leaving many more injured. I want to once again thank every donor, who gives of themselves when they give blood to the ASBP. I also want to thank the truly extraordinary military blood banking personnel and transfusion staff. Our military donor centers shipped blood immediately to ensure the supply at Darnall Army Medical Center was strong, and the staff on site worked around the clock, literally, to help save lives.
 
Fittingly, then, in this Thanksgiving edition of our newsletter you will hear from some of our recipients whose stories will remind all of us of the miraculous power of blood.

Warm regards,
COL Francisco Rentas

I was first introduced to blood donation when I trained as a medical laboratory technician (MLT) in 1996. It's not that I was unaware of blood donation before then but my training as an MLT gave me a much better understanding of how blood products are used and the need to donate. So, during my clinical rotation in a blood bank at Naval Hospital Great Lakes in 1997 at the age of 20, I learned how to do the actual "stick" to start the collection process. This "stick" is a bit different from regular vein-puncture since there is a very specific, methodical, and step-by-step site preparation process and a slightly larger gauge needle. I was intrigued by the process as well as the purpose and wanted to donate. So, after performing collections on volunteers during the blood drive, I too volunteered and became a blood donor for the first time!
 
I transferred to Okinawa in 2000 and once again, was assigned to the blood bank. I continued to donate but I also continued to learn more and more about the many different uses for blood and blood products. As president of the Junior Enlisted Association and Leading Petty Officer of transfusion services, I had a platform from which I could help promote blood donation. We had a very active junior enlisted population who did a lot of volunteer activity to include blood drives. I worked to promote blood donation at every opportunity and that is how I arrived at the idea that I would reenlist while donating blood. My reenlistment was a requirement of my selection to the Seaman to Admiral-21 Program.
 
I reported to NROTC University of Florida in the summer of 2004. A blood drive was held at the start of the fall semester to foster some friendly competition between the services and also promote a good cause. I joined the midshipmen in soundly defeating Army and Air Force ROTC for the number of donors. After that donation, a friend asked me if I had considered aphaeresis platelet donation. I was intrigued since I had seen so much need for platelets in Okinawa and knew that platelets are harder to come by and have a very short shelf life. This began a monthly routine of aphaeresis platelet donation which I continued from 2004 through August 2007.
 
September 15, 2007...why is this date important...well, I sat front row, north end zone, and watched my Florida Gators beat Tennessee 59-20! And later that evening, I became a blood recipient. I have no recollection of the accident that was caused by a drunk driver. I woke up in the hospital with my entire family around me and they filled me in on what happened. I lost about three units of blood and had been transfused with at least two units of RBCs.
 
A few months into my recovery, I inquired as to the rules regarding donating blood again.  This is when I was told I could donate again after one year had passed from the date of my transfusion. When I donated in the past, I did it simply because I believed it was the right thing to do, if you could do it. Only a very small percentage of the population that is eligible to donate actually does so.  Now that I had become a recipient, it only intensified my desire to donate again.  I am more than happy to tell anyone who will listen about the need to donate blood.  I donated at the first opportunity after regulations allowed me to do so in September 2008.
 
I continued to donate in Gainesville and have donated twice since arriving at Fort Sam Houston. As the second anniversary of my accident has now arrived, I looked forward to once again "beating the drum" to call attention to the need for blood donation. 
 
YOU could save a life like mine!

Click here to read the complete story on the ASBP web site.