By Frank Jones, American Red Cross

Meet Dan McEntee. Dan describes himself as “a regular Joe.” Though Dan has traveled to many faraway places, Florissant, Missouri (a suburb of St. Louis) has always been his home. As Dan grew up, his family taught him the values of community, self-sufficiency, and hard work. During his last two years of high school, Dan attended school full-time during the day, then worked a full-time trade school job at night. Dan’s employer sponsored a blood drive and encouraged employees to participate. Until then, Dan had been completely unaware of the occurrence or medical necessity of donating blood. Dan gave his first unit of blood at age 18. For the next 52 years, Dan regularly donated blood with the American Red Cross and continues to donate today.

While hero is an often-used title, retired television journalist Tom Brokaw declared, “Heroes are people who rise to the occasion and slip quietly away.” Since Brokaw’s definition of a hero fits Dan McEntee so perfectly, we at the Red Cross consider Dan McEntee a hidden hero.

The need for blood is great. Every two seconds, someone in the United States needs blood. The Red Cross estimates 4.5 million people in the United States have blood transfusions annually, typically receiving more than 40,000 pints of blood components a day. While blood accounts for only about 7% to 8% of total body weight, it is essential in modern health care. Blood cannot be created in the laboratory, nor is there anything that can substitute for it. The only source of blood comes through the generosity of those willing to donate.

The need for blood can also be very personal. Several years ago, Dan’s 12-year-old son fell out of a 40-foot tree. With multiple internal and external injuries, doctors decided the best approach to treatment was to provide the boy with two units of blood and allow his body to rest. The situation was tenuous, but thankfully Dan’s son pulled through. Doctors credited the units of blood as a major factor in the boy’s survival. “The need for blood becomes very personal when the person needing blood is one of your own,” said Dan.

When Dan first understood how vital blood is to health care and saw how quick and easy blood donation is, he wondered, “Why don’t more people donate blood?” The Red Cross provides about 40% of our nation’s blood and blood components. However, only about 3% of eligible people donate blood yearly. The main reason first time donors say they have not donated before is because nobody had asked them.

Dan has donated an estimated 20 gallons. When provided with that estimate, Dan cheerfully replied, “There’s more where that came from.” Perhaps the following anonymous quote fits Dan and all blood donors: “Volunteers don’t get paid, not because they’re worthless, but because they’re priceless.”