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| Natalie and Lauren Wolniewicz received 30 blood transfusions. |
On April 1, a very special blood drive took place in Springville,
about half an hour south of Buffalo. The community turned out to show their
support at a time when blood donations are urgently needed.
It was in honor of Natalie and Lauren Wolniewicz: Now 2
years old, the twins were born 16 weeks early. During the five months Natalie and Lauren
spent in newborn intensive care, they received a total of 30 blood transfusions
from donors.
The twins’ mother, Julie Wolniewicz, is new to volunteering
with the American Red Cross.
“I’d donated blood in the past,” Julie told me, “but I’d
never really considered that blood transfusions were for babies too.”
After a nurse mentioned Red Cross blood drives this February,
Julie sprang into action. Setting up a blood drive, she reasoned, was the
perfect opportunity to help out the community during a time of need.
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| Photos courtesy: Julie Wolniewicz |
She dived in, organizing the upcoming drive with Mary
Lattimer and Andrew Chung from Western New York’s Red Cross. One month later, and
the Springville blood drive was fully booked.
Julie found that setting up the blood drive was an easy
experience. Resources were simple to find and Red Cross staff were enthusiastic
to help. Even more eager than usual, perhaps — nearly 10,000 blood drives have
been canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak, representing 300,000 fewer
donations collected. In order to ensure
blood products are available to all who need them, maintaining supply is
crucial.
Safety and infection control are the highest priorities of
the Red Cross at blood drives. Everyone’s temperatures are checked before the
drive, social distancing guidelines are observed, hand sanitizer is readily
available, and surfaces are regularly disinfected. With a blood transfusion
needed every two seconds in the U.S, blood donations remain a constant
necessity.
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| Root 39 Event Center in Springville, NY |
Julie’s blood drive was already fully booked by the weekend
before. In spite of the outbreak, Springville’s community came together, while
still keeping their distance. They filtered into Root 39 — a refurbished barn
that makes for a beautiful event space — to give back a little in honor of
Lauren and Natalie.
And now, at two years old, the twins are growing fast. The
future looks bright for Lauren and Natalie Wolniewicz, and Julie reckons
they’ll start causing trouble soon enough.
-Tim Snedden
American Red Cross Communications Volunteer
