In the summer of 2023, I underwent 14 surgeries to treat a rare condition I’ve lived with since childhood. Complications with healing kept me bedridden for 47 days while my medical team at Mayo Clinic cared for me.
I’m grateful for the skill and kindness of the people who treated me. It was still a long, frightening stretch. When you’re living through something like that, your world can become very small: your health, the people caring for you, and the hope that tomorrow will be a little easier.
During that time, I became very anemic and needed three separate blood transfusions. My doctors could order the blood I needed, but someone had to give it first. Somewhere, people I had never met had taken time out of their day to donate. When I needed help, their blood was there.
That thought has stayed with me.
My blood type is O-negative. O-negative red blood cells can be given to people of any blood type, making them especially valuable in emergencies. But if I need red blood cells, I can receive only O-negative blood. According to the American Red Cross, only about 7% of people have that blood type.
Before those transfusions, I understood that donating blood mattered. I don’t think I fully understood what it could mean to the person receiving it. I was dealing with complications I couldn’t resolve on my own, and part of the care that helped me through them came from strangers.
I don’t know my donors’ names. They don’t know mine. They don’t know about those 47 days or how often I’ve thought of them since. I wish I could tell them that their decision to donate became part of my story, and that I’m deeply grateful.
That’s why I wanted to share this ahead of Blossom Rock’s blood drive with Vitalant. Arizona hospitals need approximately 700 blood donations each day. You don’t have to be O-negative to make a difference; patients need blood of many types. A donation you make here could help someone through a difficult time of their own, even if you never learn their name.
If you’re able to give, please consider joining us Wednesday, Sept. 30, from 5–8 p.m. at The Dutch. You can reserve an appointment with Vitalant, and walk-ins are welcome.
To the blood donors who helped me: I may never get to thank you in person. But I haven’t forgotten what you did for me. I hope sharing my story helps someone else decide to give.
Susanne Campbell
Communications Manager, Blossom Rock