Grandfather Vaughan Smith had made an incredible 132 blood donations over the last 62 years. He lived in Cwmbran for 40 years but now lives in Newport.
The 79-year-old was the guest of honour at a special ceremony hosted by the Welsh Blood Service to celebrate donors who have reached donation milestones in whole blood, platelets, or donated stem cells for bone marrow transplants.
Vaughan donated for the first time shortly after his 18th birthday in 1963, making him one of Wales’ longest-serving blood donors.
“I started because my father was a blood donor, so it was the natural thing for me to do, then it became a way of life for me,” the retired engineer said.
“I’m chuffed to bits to receive the award and to learn that I’m one of the longest-serving donors in Wales, but I never did it to get any sort of recognition.”
With a single blood donation having the power to save up to three lives, Vaughan may have saved nearly 400 lives. Unfortunately, he had to retire from donating blood after being diagnosed with cancer.
Vaughan added: “I wish I could carry on, but my diagnosis means I can’t. I have to draw a line under that chapter of my life and try to encourage as many people as possible to take my place on that donation chair.”
Alan Prosser, director of the Welsh Blood Service, said: “Our Service depends on the continued support and generosity of people like Vaughan.
“Vaughan’s years of commitment have left some big shoes to fill and we’re hoping his willingness to share his story will encourage others to follow in his footsteps.
“On behalf of everyone at the Welsh Blood Service and the hundreds of people whose lives have been saved or extended by his donations, I thank Vaughan for every single blood donation and his incredible generosity. We all wish him the very best in the future.”
Vaughan was one of more than 110 donors celebrated from Cwmbran and the surrounding areas who have collectively saved nearly 20,000 lives through whole blood, platelets or stem cells.
Chris Thomas, a 38-year-old from Caldicot, received two awards having donated blood on 50 occasions and donated stem cells to a cancer patient. Bone marrow transplants are considered a ‘last resort’, typically reserved for patients after all other treatment options have failed. Chris was identified as the best match from a global database of 40 million volunteers to help a patient in need of a stem cell transplant.
Chris said: “I’ve been a blood donor since I turned 17 and jumped at the chance to join the stem cell registry. I feel a really strong sense of pride that I was a match for someone and was able to donate my stem cells. I was that person’s last hope in their fight against cancer.”
Despite 40 million people being on stem cell registries around the world, three in 10 patients won’t find the match they need. The Welsh Blood Service aims to recruit 4,000 new volunteers to its stem cell registry every year to reduce the number of patients who are unable to find a match.
Chris called on anyone eligible to join the Welsh Blood Service’s stem cell registry.
He said: “If you’re aged 16-30, or 16-45 if you’re from a Black, Asian, mixed or minority ethnic background, please consider joining the registry. I was the one person capable of helping my recipient, and you could be the one person capable of helping another patient in need.”
Make an appointment to donate blood
Visit the Welsh Blood website to find make an appointment at a site near you.