“Do a good turn daily!”
That’s what all good Boy Scouts memorize. And yet, sometimes it just doesn’t work out. Such was the case when we went to donate blood at the Red Cross Blood Drive the other day.
Josh had not given blood in a long time, because after having lived in Belgium for several years, there was always that crazy mad-cow disease problem. However, having recently checked with a Red Cross worker, I learned that everything should be okay.
We marched forth confidently at our scheduled time of 4:30 to give blood, only to read about a rule in the pre-donation manual stating that if you have lived in Europe for a cumulative total of more than 5 years, then you are out of luck! I asked a worker about this, and the first answer was that I would be fine, that it was just a malaria issue, and my countries (Belgium for four years, France for two) were not on the list.
However, after speaking with the second worker that verified my responses, the news came out: five years in any European country excludes you from ever giving blood! Noooo! (For the curious, the reason being that mad-cow disease, which was an issue back in the 90’s, is a neurological disease, transferred in blood, that can only be tested by taking a slice of your brain. bummer.)
So instead of giving blood, I was given a affidavit stating the reasons I could not ever give blood, and had to sign it to show my understanding. I also got a nice “Indefinite Deferral Letter,” shown here, also stating the same. By this time, Paige had already given blood. The plus side? I still got to eat the snacks… :)
Haha that is so funny. Well at least there will be less needles in your future.
I have had skin cancer before and every time I go to give blood they freak out about it for a few minutes then pull the supervisor over who says it’s okay for me to donate blood. It’s just so funny that it happens every single time.
That’s too bad, but then again, at least you’ll never feel any pressure any time they come around asking you to donate! Just whip out your letter! :D
It was fun to see you guys and Matt there! It was like a blood-givin’ family reunion!
That is a hoot guys! Josh, why were you in Belgium for 4 years? I knew you served your mission in France.
It was great talking to you both last night. Keep posting pictures and news. I LOVE it!!!
Love you guys,
Melissa & Byron :o)
Melissa, my family lived there because my dad was an international agricultural consultant. It was awesome! If I could live anywhere again, it would be Belgium. We’ll keep updating just for you!