“When I was a young child, I had surgery to get my tonsils and adenoids removed—I think I was in third or fourth grade,” said Kandance Vincent of Saint George, South Carolina, as she vaguely recalls what became a scary moment for her family. 

After what is typically considered routine surgery, Kandance experienced complications in recovery that caused her to hemorrhage blood. She needed a blood transfusion. It was the blood on hospital shelves given by volunteer donors that saved Kandance’s life. As she grew older, Kandance learned to understand the seriousness of the event. 

“As soon as I was of age to donate blood, at age sixteen, I needed my mom to sign a form for me to donate,” Kandance described her first time donating blood. “I started donating in high school, and I’ve been donating ever since.”

Kandance uses her childhood experience of receiving a blood transfusion to encourage others in her life to give blood. She shares how giving blood is a rewarding gift and the gratitude and pride she feels after donating. Kandance has convinced her sister, a few cousins, her boyfriend, and several friends to donate – accompanying each of them to their first donation. 

“Without that person who gave blood that I received, I wouldn’t be here today. It means everything to me to be able to give blood,” says Kandance on the experience that shaped her life and fostered a desire to give back. “It makes me feel important when the Red Cross reaches out to me to say ‘your blood is very much needed right now. Please come help us.’ All I can think about is somebody helped me, so I want to help everybody else that I can.”

The American Red Cross continues to have an ongoing, critical need for lifesaving blood this summer as blood product distributions to hospitals remain higher than anticipated. In recent months, the Red Cross has sent 12% more blood products to hospitals to help patients in need, including higher distributions to hospitals in areas where the pandemic continues to disrupt normal blood collection operations. 

As summer vacations end and people return to regular routines, the Red Cross encourages eligible donors to make an appointment. Join Kandance in saving lives. Find a blood drive near you today: redcrossblood.org