When the new Wawa Foundation American Red Cross bloodmobile debuted on July 24th in Wawa, Pennsylvania, one of the people most excited to check it out was blood collector Doreen Lettman.

After she finished her shift as a phlebotomist at the blood drive that day, she headed straight to the new bloodmobile for a self-guided tour.

Doreen spent several minutes examining how the equipment was set up and where donors would be located while giving blood.

“It’s nice! It’s spacious,” she said. “It’s well equipped.”

Is taking blood from someone in a bloodmobile more challenging than inside a building? “Not really. It all depends on how many are on the schedule,” she said.

Doreen has been a blood collector for 22 years. She has taken blood from donors in many different locations, including buses. “I have been doing buses for many years,” she said.

As a blood collector, Doreen knows how to help calm any fears donors may have and help them stay focused on giving. Do blood donors get nervous? “Some people are. We do a lot of high schools so kids are typically nervous.”

For Doreen, phlebotomy has been a fulfilling career.

“Get to meet new people. Go to different places every day, so that’s one of the most fascinating things,” she said. “I get to help people. That’s the whole goal is to help people. So that really sits well with me, to know that you’re helping people every day.”

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National #BloodCollectorsWeek is Sept. 1-7, 2024. Celebrate those who ensure donors have great experiences and patients get the blood they need. Schedule an appointment to donate blood!

- Story and photo by Jenny Farley