So it goes - a blood recipient shares her story
Mother who once received blood after a miscarriage gives back by giving blood
Mother who once received blood after a miscarriage gives back by giving blood
Jaimi Russell with her husband
“The most important thing I learned on Tralfamadore was that when a person dies he only appears to die. He is still very much alive in the past, so it is very silly for people to cry at his funeral. All moments, past, present, and future, always have existed, always will exist. …So it goes.”
Kurt Vonnegut, Slaughterhouse-Five
Story told by Ian Seth Levine, Red Cross Volunteer
Jaimi prayed—ever her father’s daughter—a preacher’s kid. But her father’s skin was like a canary in a coal mine. Which made sense, since smoking caused jaundice that yellowed him like a vintage Bible. Jaimi prayed again. But he did not have much longer. And eventually, left. So it goes.
That’s when Jaimi met Clarence, another preacher’s kid. At first, she did not like him. They dated for six months, but Jaimi was concerned he would eventually leave her. So, she said they should break up (but was bluffing). He agreed (but was not). So it goes.
The bluff lasted for three years. Jaimi and Clarence had a mutual friend named Lisa. Unbeknownst to the other friend, Lisa acted as a mediator to help reunite them. Lisa’s love for her friends saved their lives. But it did not save hers. She left them due to cancer. So it goes.
Because of Lisa, Jaimi and Clarence were back together. But as quickly as they got married, they had a miscarriage. Jaimi lost so much blood she relied upon the donations of generous people like you to survive. During the next twenty-one years, Jaimi and Clarence would have children ranging in age from starting kindergarten to leaving for college. So it goes.
For people like Jaimi, who have lost so many loved ones, it can feel like there is nothing left to give. But as a preacher’s kid, she might remind herself that “it is in giving that one receives.” Maybe that is why she donates blood to the American Red Cross.
Because 80% of the population can receive Jaimi’s blood type of O Positive, it is one of the first to run out during shortages, like the dangerously and historically low shortage right now. Jaimi said, “people who are hesitant to donate blood believe they will lose work hours or lose energy.” So it goes.
But Jaimi has already donated over four gallons of blood. That blood is especially precious to the 100,000 people in the United States who have sickle cell disease. Most people with sickle cell disease are African-American or Black, and need a close blood type match only found in donors of the same race or similar ethnicity, like Jaimi.
Whether she is running the scholarship founded in Lisa’s name, or working as a public servant, Jaimi lives each day grateful for the people who donated their blood to her, and the opportunity to donate her blood back. Click here to join them.