Donating from 17 to 71, David makes it Donation 137 so far.
‘Giving blood is one of the things you can give in this world that costs absolutely nothing and can do so much good.’
Having stared his donation journey in 1971 aged 17, David Edes took in his 71st birthday this week by giving blood at Inverness Donor Centre. David continued, ‘My parents always encouraged me to follow in their footsteps as blood donors and it’s something I’ve always known was necessary. Mum managed to give 50 donations and Dad gave 75 so I think they’d be pleased to know that I’ve just given my 137th donation and counting.’
‘I started donating in Singapore when I was serving as a navigation officer cadet. The Queens Alexandra Nursing Corps came aboard and asked if anyone might like to give blood and the captain nominated all of us. It was in the family for me, so I was more than happy to get involved. My son, also David has carried on the family tradition and attends Inverness Donor Centre to donate plasma.’
David continued, ‘The systems have changed a lot since I first started to give blood but it’s all still fairly simple, so I’d say to anyone who’s never given blood before or who hasn’t been along in a while to just get booked in and do it.’
‘If you’re able you should, and you just never know when you might need some help yourself.’
As a group O negative donor, David’s blood can be given to almost anyone, making it an extremely valuable resource for emergencies where blood is needed immediately. It’s universal quality means additional stocks of O- are needed to provide standby cover.
David, a happy birthday from us all at SNBTS and we look forward to welcoming you back for your next donation soon.
Inverness Blood Donor Centre is open weekly on Mondays and Thursdays and will also open for a special donation session on Sunday 29th June.
- Contact us online or give us a call on 0345 90 90 999 (Mon-Fri 9am-5pm) to book an appointment or find out more.