It was on July 7, 1977, that Harold Mendenhall, now 84, started donating blood. It’s been 35 years now and Mendenhall has donated blood for more than 400 times.
There is a specific reason for which Mendenhall started donating blood. The reason was that Mendenhall’s wife Frankie got diagnosed with breast cancer. After her death, Mendenhall was all broken.
He then started donating blood on regular a basis. Later it was found that Mendenhall has been donating six gallons of blood annually. Recently, it has been revealed that he has made his 100 gallons blood donation last month.
As for Mendenhall, he was of the view that donation of blood was a way to cope with the grief of his wife’s death as well as that of his two sons. On every single donation, Mendenhall feels that his family has been complementing his veins.
“Giving blood can only be done by a human being, so that’s been my payback for my career, good health and all the blessings I’ve had”, said Mendenhall.
However, it is worth noting that Mendenhall donates platelets rather than whole blood, which means donation of two pints rather than of one.
Source: www.topnews.us