Donor Recipient Stories

In May of 2005 Janessa McMillan was 13 years old and riding her bike back to school. She was let out of school earlier in the day but needed to return in the afternoon. Her house was up on a hillside in Utah County and she was riding her bike down the hill towards a busy intersection. Janessa, who was not wearing a helmet as she rode back to school, noticed there was a large truck pulling a flatbed trailer filled with lawn mowing equipment at the intersection at the bottom of the hill and tried to stop. Janessa’s bike hit the back edge of the trailer and flew over the trailer and landed on her left arm in the intersection. An ambulance picked her up and took her to a nearby parking lot where a helicopter was waiting to take her to Primary Children’s Medical Center.

At the hospital Janessa found out that the left part of her face had been scraped off and she had a blood clot in her brain. She also needed 9 screws, 2 plates, 14 stitches in her ear, 55 stitches in her arm and numerous more across the top of her head.

Janessa cried the first time that she looked in to a mirror after the crash. Her face was red, swollen and had stitches and bandages all over. Thanks to the good work of the doctors and staff at Primary Children’s Medical Center, Janessa was able to go home after one week in the hospital. She spent the whole summer doing physical therapy to get back in to shape and ready to go back to school.

Janessa and her family realize how close she was to dying and want to thank all the blood donors for giving in a time of need. Janessa’s mom, Lisa, said that she never gave a thought about the blood supply before, but she can’t put it in to words how thankful she was that there was enough blood for Janessa during her time of need.

Today Janessa is healthy and happy and living a normal life.

Isabelle Eve Postma was born on May 20, 2001. Her parents, like most young couples, imagined what her life might be like and daydreamed of her playing soccer and the cello, her first day of school or just the first morning she would run down the hall and jump into their bed. But, less than a month before her first birthday, she was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor.

Although doctors performed surgery to biopsy the tumor soon after her diagnosis, it was later determined that an operation to remove the tumor would not be an option without devastating consequences. Because of her young age, radiation therapy would also cause more harm than good. It seemed chemotherapy was her best and only chance.

Suffering from hydrocephalus and other symptoms caused by the growing tumor and its treatment, Isabelle spent three weeks in the pediatric intensive care unit at Primary Children's Hospital and eight more weeks in either the neuro trauma or oncology/hematology unit.

Isabelle quickly lost her hair but was never able to misplace her smile. She has been her parents' greatest source of hope and continues to surprise and inspire them daily. Though much of her future is still in question, each day is both a blessing and a miracle.

Isabelle would like to thank all of the doctors and nurses who have taken such good care of her--and especially those who have donated the blood and platelets she continues to need with her treatments.

— Isabelle's Dad, 10/15/2002

The afternoon Eliza was born, I kept saying to myself with wonder and disbelief, "It's only March 5th! It's only March 5th!"

You see, it was March 5, 2001, and Eliza was not due until June 12. She had been born 14 weeks early due to a deficient placenta. Not only was she extremely premature, she was also much smaller than she should have been. She weighed in at 1 pound, 2 ounces. We were told that for her age, she should have weighed at least 2 pounds!

Less than two hours after birth, Eliza was transferred to the Newborn ICU at the University Hospital, where she remained for exactly three-and-a-half months. During her hospital stay, she was kept on a ventilator for six weeks and was treated by the most professional and loving medical staff around. She also received seven blood transfusions, most of which took place in her first month of life.

While I was raised in a family that taught the importance of donating blood, I never thought I would experience such a direct confirmation of this need. We are so grateful for the blood donors who gave life to our baby! When you give blood, you truly do give life.

Eliza is now a happy, ever-growing baby who is bright, alert and very normal. She does not have any lasting affects from her severe prematurity. She has a contagious smile and loves to share it with anyone and everyone.

Please donate blood and give life to a baby, to a person and to a family!

Thank You!

— Julie Doherty, 08/05/2002

When I was 21 and in the Navy, I left the base on foot. I was in a hurry, and the road to and from the naval base was four lanes wide with a speed limit of 50 miles per hour outside the base. After walking a block or two in the median strip, I was hit by a speeding car. I was told that by the time an ambulance picked me up, I needed six units of blood.

I woke up in the hospital in serious trauma, but glad to be alive. After I recovered, I decided I would give blood whenever possible to "repay" what was given to me when I needed it.

— Anonymous, 08/05/2002

In 1998 my fourteen-year-old daughter, Taran, was diagnosed with cancer. From the onset, she needed blood products as part of her treatment. I can't begin to explain as a parent who hasn't gone through a serious illness with a child how difficult it is to meet the many challenges that come up. Over the course of two years of treatment, she nearly died three times, underwent six major operations and spent a total of two months in the ICU. This was coupled with chemotherapy and radiation treatment. I cannot even begin to count the units of blood that were needed to sustain her life. Without the blood, she would have died early in treatment.

While cancer eventually claimed her in May of 2001, the two additional years that I had her with me are precious. She and I became very close. We spent a lot of time together and shared many tender moments. This time with my daughter would not have been possible without the [blood] donations of hundreds of people. I am grateful to them. I have no other way to pay them back than to be a regular donor myself.

For the first 40 years of my life, I had no need of hospitals or blood services, and nothing suggested that I would. That changed overnight, and if it happened to me, it can happen to anyone. I encourage everyone who is physically capable to be a regular donor. You can't believe how much it means to people in need.

— Lt. Col. Randy Johnson, Utah Highway Patrol, 03/01/2002

Why donate blood you ask? I can answer this question in three simple words: it saves lives!

On April 15, 2001, I was involved in a rollover motor vehicle accident where I sustained life-threatening injuries and was immediately airlifted to the trauma unit at the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City. My list of injuries included a complex grade-five liver laceration with hypotension, a left pneumothorax, multiple left rib fractures with complete lung failure, a right pulmonary contusion, closed-head and traumatic brain injuries, a scalp laceration, a ligamentous cervical spine injury, a left radial arm fracture and dislocation of my left thumb. I required emergent exploratory surgeries, a left chest tube thoracostamy, operative repair on my left arm and aggressive resuscitation. As a result of the trauma, I developed acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) as well as pneumonia. My hospital stay included a month in the intensive care unit with approximately two-and-a-half weeks on full-time life support. I was later transported to LDS Hospital for a week of inpatient rehabilitation, which included physical, occupational and speech therapy. I also received training for internal feedings, cognitive deficits and swallowing.

As you can imagine, this ordeal has been the most horrific experience my family and I will ever encounter. Through the expertise of the University of Utah Hospital trauma unit staff and the invaluable consideration of those who donated blood, my life was saved.

I received three units of platelets, twelve units of red blood cells and twenty-five units of plasma, totaling forty units of blood products. Thanks to those forty individuals who donated that blood, I am alive today.

I, along with my family, want to personally thank each and every person who has donated blood. Whether somebody close to you has needed blood or not, you, as a donor, need to know how important you are.

Thank you for taking your valuable time to donate lifesaving blood products for those in need.

— Ryan Gardner, 08/21/01

Update: Click here to view the uplifting letter Ryan wrote exactly one year after his accident.

Donating blood is giving the gift of life. Our son, Shane, was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia at age 6 in December of 1999. This cancer prevents his bone marrow from making healthy blood cells, which would normally transport oxygen and iron, create platelets to clot and build immunity against bacteria and viruses.

Upon diagnosis, Shane also suffered from anemia and was immediately given a blood transfusion. As the rosy color filled back into his body and face, we prayed a quiet prayer of thanks to that person who shared a part of him or herself so our son may one day be healthy again and cancer free. Since that first day, Shane has had several transfusions, and without them, he would not be here today.

Perhaps the greatest reward from donating blood is knowing your blood, part of who you are, lives on in those around you. So for those who are thinking of donating, understand you would truly be offering a most beautiful part of yourself for the benefit of those less fortunate. And for those who have donated, Shane and all of our family thank you for giving him the greatest gift of all -- the gift of life.

Shane just celebrated his eighth birthday. Please give the gift of life by donating blood.

— Shane's Parents, 08/02/01

Before I was born, my mother had a tubal pregnancy that nearly took her life. In the trauma center, she received 4 units of blood. If that blood had not been available, she would probably not have survived - and I wouldn't have been born a few years later. For this reason, I feel I owe my life to the thoughtful acts of blood donors, and I am proud to say I regularly donate blood.

— Chris Stevens, 06/27/01

Community Partners