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County resident gives gift of life -- and then some
Nevada Daily Mail
It takes about a week for the human body to produce a pint of blood. Thanks to modern medicine it only takes a little while for a blood donor to give that same pint of blood to be stored or used by someone who has been in an accident or becomes very ill.
Now, imagine how long it would take to donate 24 gallons of blood if you could only donate four or five times a year. It took Gary Jones, 65, of Nevada, 48 years to donate a total of 24 gallons. That's a long time to be committed to something so selfless, but Jones has been giving blood as often as he could since he first gave in 1965 as part of a fraternity competition at the University of Missouri.
He hasn't missed a single opportunity. Jones has been stuck 192 times he said, and only once was there a problem. It seems a bit of skin blocked the needle after it was inserted and they had to insert it again.
He used to give blood four times a year, but now he says he can donate every 56 days or up to five times each year. Jones said he used to donate at the First Baptist Church at Main and Hunter streets but then he went to work at 3M and the Red Cross came to the plant and set up in the facility. Now the bloodmobile pulls into the lot and everything is done right there in the truck, or he goes to the new First Baptist Church on Highland Avenue.
Other things have changed too. Donors under 21 years of age had to have parental consent, but they don't any more. Jones said that the nurse drawing the blood used to ask donors a series of questions while preparing them to donate. Now donors have to read a booklet and answer several computerized questions before the process can begin. And it has to be done every time a donor comes in to give blood.
Jones said he has never had an adverse reaction to donating blood, but he knows people who have. His wife Sandra got a little dizzy one time many years a go. Jones said she no longer donates but it has nothing to do with an adverse reaction.
Jones gets nothing for his selfless act. The Red Cross used to give donors a T-shirt, but they don't give them out anymore. Jones said he must still have about 30 of those shirts at home. Jones and most other people that donate blood do it to help someone else.
It seems as though his O Rh positive blood type is kind of rare. His blood is lacking some antigens that most other types have. Some blood recipients cannot have the antigens he is lacking so he is a perfect match for those people. He carries a special donor's card noting the specific antigens he lacks. Jones has never had to have blood. He has donated to specific people when the need arose. Years ago it was more common for a community member or family member to donate to someone they knew.
Jones said he is looking forward to December of 2014 when he will pass the 25 gallon mark. It will be somewhat of a milestone for him. Not many people make the kind of commitment to donating blood that Jones has. Peggy Tedlock of the Nevada office of the American Red Cross said there are some area residents over 20 gallons but she couldn't think of anyone with more than Jones.
According to Stephanie Hillenburg of the Greater Ozark-Springfield Office of the American Red Cross, Jones has donated more blood than anyone in the entire region, perhaps in the state. She said the highest donor in the country had donated 39 gallons.
Jones is a lifelong resident of Vernon County. He has three grown children and said one son is an active donor. He continued to donate blood during his 26 years in the Missouri National Guard and Reserves. He is active in the community. He is a member of the Masonic Lodge and volunteers his time for the Habitat for Humanity homes built in the city.
Some of those things take more time than donating blood. Jones said it only takes about six minutes to give a pint of blood. That doesn't include the reading and questions. He thinks giving blood is a good indicator of his overall health too and he doesn't mind the time it takes out of his day. "It just takes a little time, and hopefully, somebody will get some benefit from it," he said.