The gift of life

Hello Team Tod fans. We don't yet have specific numbers to report from the November 30 blood donor clinic, but Canadian Blood Services says it was very successful.

With Team Tod's help, Canadian Blood Services booked that clinic at 105%! While a blizzard scared some donors away, CBS was appreciative of how many People Who Love Sara came out regardless of the blowing snow and freezing temperatures!

A few quick facts from the CBS:
1 in 2 Canadians is eligible to give blood
1 in 60 actually donates.

Not everyone who signed up to donate with Team Tod was actually allowed to give blood that day, so the "guest book" kept at the cookies and juice station is short several names. If you came and didn't sign the book, do let Sara and Kevin know you were there! They will also get a list of the individuals who couldn't attend that clinic because it was so well-subscribed, and a list of people who couldn't give that night because they regularly give at other places and weren't yet "due" to voluntarily lose another 500 ml of blood.

And now, for the competition most donors did not even know they were in... (drum roll) the winner of the Team Tod Fastest Donation is ringette Coach Scott Wolsey at 5:12.

Coach Kathy Leonard's Fastest Time Donation (7:34) fell within minutes of her exuberant celebration at the juice and cookie station. Leonard's time was easily trounced by Coaches Terry Shydlowski (5:20) and Kim Zizakovic (5:42). All three of these women played ringette within three hours of their donation (against the advice of medical personnel AND those operating the juice and cookie station). Oh yes, and Zizakovic reports scoring a HAT TRICK! Three goals and a blood donation in one day! (A modest Zizakovic reports that the only thing better than the hat trick was knowing she beat Kathy's time.)

The Foothills Alliance Church hosts a blood donor clinic in early December. For more information and to learn if you can donate, call 1-888-2-DONATE.

Information on the Stem Cell Transplant program operated by Canadian Blood Services can be found at: www.onematch.ca. If you are aged 17 to 50, healthy and willing to donate, please check out this site.

Interesting facts about stem cell transplants:
- Your blood group is of NO importance to matching a donor and patient.
- Stem cells are placed in a donor bag and taken by medical courier to patients all over the world (so sorry, you won't get to travel).
- Donors from all ethnic communities are needed to develop a data base with a broad ethnic representation.
** Sara's quest for a stem cell match greatly benefits from the fact that she comes from an ethnic donor group with the largest percentage of potential donors.