Virtual Blood Drive

I'm Patricia, Executive Director of Tully & Weiss Charities. When my son was airlifted from our local hospital to the children's hospital for diagnosis, there was blood already on board the helicopter — in case he began to crash before we had more answers. The moment we landed, they drew a sample of his blood, confirmed what his body was already fighting, and gave him the donor blood we had flown with. Bag after bag of blood was needed just to stabilize him. That blood came from donors who never knew it would go to him. They gave without knowing who would need it, or when. They just gave. That was only the beginning. Over the course of his treatment, he needed countless transfusions — whole blood, platelets, and cryoprecipitate, a blood product I didn't even know existed until we needed it. Blood products like these aren't optional extras in cancer treatment. They're what keeps a child's body strong enough to survive the chemo that's trying to save them. My husband, an aunt, and a few friends later donated directly for him, so blood would be there when his own father couldn't give. But that first blood, the blood that flew with him before we knew anything — that came from strangers. And nothing given is ever wasted. Blood held for my son, nearing its expiration, was reassigned to someone else in need. It moves toward whoever needs it next. This September, in honor of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, I'm asking you to give the same way those strangers gave for my son: without knowing who it's for. You won't know who receives it. You won't know their name, their diagnosis, or whether they're a child fighting for their life the way my son was, or a child mid-treatment who needs it just to get through the week. That's exactly the point. Every donation matters. Every donor is a link in a chain that reaches a hospital room somewhere, right now, where a family is waiting for exactly what you have to give.