2 of 3

When Jenny died on October 28, 1995, a month before her 22nd birthday, she lost her battle with leukemia, but she fulfilled her purpose in life. Just before she died, I promised her that I would carry on that work. To me, it was like receiving a spiritual transfusion.

At Jenny's memorial service, I urged people to give blood in her memory and to consider becoming regular donors (giving every eight weeks). For many, the importance of donating blood finally hit home. I gave my first speech two days after we buried Jenny, speaking in her place at a Rotary Club meeting.

Hundreds of faithful donors kept our daughter alive and gave us almost four more years together—a gift beyond measure. Four precious years that Jenny enjoyed as she finished high school and started college, an optimistic pre-med major. Four years of celebrating birthdays, Christmases, and family outings. That's what blood donors gave us. Not just blood, but four more years for this father to watch his daughter mature into a young woman and fall in love with a wonderful young man. Four more years of father-daughter talks into the wee hours of the morning, just the two of us. 

The critical importance of having blood to transfuse was vividly illustrated in 1996 when the wife of nfl All-Star Jerry Rice had a crisis during the birth of their third child. As Jackie Rice began to deliver the afterbirth, her uterine wall ripped and she began to hemorrhage uncontrollably. Doctors went through 200 units of blood as they worked feverishly to keep her from bleeding to death. Thankfully, they did.

 If a celebrity like Jerry Rice had gone on television and asked for help, tens of thousands would have rushed to give blood, but that wouldn't have saved Jackie's life. The blood had to be there before she needed it, because it takes two to three days to process blood.

Interestingly, during the time Jenny was receiving blood, the Central California Blood Center wasn't collecting enough blood to meet its own needs for serving a five-county area of more than a million people and 30 hospitals. In fact, the Center had to import 50 to 100 pints of blood every month.

I continued to urge people to give blood and became increasingly passionate about the cause. I realized then that Jenny's purpose had become my own. 

During Jenny's treatment, I came to realize how vital blood management was to our community and especially to families like ours. You can have the best hospitals and the best physicians that money can buy, but if you need blood and don't have it, nothing else matters.

next page... |  2 of 3

	What did you think of this story?
	Please to give us your feedback.

Home  |  People of Faith  |  Stories of Hope  |  Today's Culture
Build Your Faith  |  Laughing Matters  |  Archives  |  Contact Us

				Try 3 Issues of Christianity Today Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address Subscribe to Christianity Today and get 3 free trial issues. No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. If you decide you want to keep Christianity Today coming, honor your invoice for just $19.95 and receive nine more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The three trial issues are yours to keep, regardless. Give Christianity Today as a gift Order a gift subscription!