PCH accepts the 2013 Pacesetter Award from the New York Blood Center!

At Publishers Clearing House, we find that giving back in any way possible is humbling and rewarding. One of our favorite ways to give back is by donating blood in hopes of saving lives. That’s why we are so proud as a company to have received the 2013 Pacesetter Award from the New York Blood Center for our outstanding efforts with our blood drives! I sat down with Prize Patrol Elite member Danielle Lam, who accepted the Pacesetter Award, to ask her some questions about this wonderful achievement.

Dillon: So Danielle, receiving this outstanding award on behalf of PCH must have been amazing. How did it feel?

Danielle: It was such an honor to have the opportunity to represent PCH with my coworker and friend Bryan T. The New York Blood Center is such a wonderful organization that literally saves lives every single day. Just to be in the room with so many other people who help was touching. I was also so touched and excited when the New York Blood Center posted this shout out on their Fan Page on Facebook! 

Dillon: Did you enjoy yourself at the New York Blood Center event?

Danielle: Absolutely. The best part of the evening for me was when FDNY Firefighter Rob Wiedmann was honored. He suffered burns over more than half of his body while battling a 2011 Brooklyn house fire. The night of the awards ceremony he met 9 of the blood donors who saved his life. It was overwhelmingly emotional for me to be able to experience that in person. You can check out the news coverage of Rob Wiedmann here.

Dillon: How many times have you donated blood in your lifetime?

Danielle: Honestly, I’m not sure. I try to donate any chance I get. I know some people are scared, or unsure of how they’ll react to the donation process, but just a small amount of discomfort is a small price to pay to have the chance to save lives. 

Dillon: Would you encourage others to donate blood?

Danielle: Absolutely. I have been a Blood Drive Captain at PCH for years and each time I try to recruit more people. I can’t stress enough how important it is for people who are eligible to donate to step up and do so. I personally have a close family member who needed blood transfusions and seeing how that improved her health changed my life. 

Dillon: How many blood drives does PCH partake in per year?

Danielle: PCH has done 2 blood drive donations per year in the past, but we plan on doing 3 per year moving forward!

Dillon: Is there anything else you’d like to say about donating blood?

Danielle: I know it sounds like a scary experience, but I personally think it’s the furthest thing from that. It is such a GREAT feeling donating blood, knowing that that short amount of time and discomfort could literally save lives. Examples of patients who need blood are burn victims, trauma victims, newborn babies and mothers delivering babies, transplant recipients, patients with sickle cell disease, cancer patients and many, many more. If you are eligible to donate, and you haven’t done so or if can donate again soon, please read these facts from the Blood Center website. 

1. More than 4.5 million patients need blood transfusions each year in the U.S. and Canada.
2. 43,000 pints: amount of donated blood used each day in the U.S. and Canada.
3. Someone needs blood every two seconds.
4. About 1 in 7 people entering a hospital need blood.
5. One pint of blood can save up to three lives.

I hope I can inspire even just a few more people to go out and donate soon. If you have donated blood before or have been the recipient of blood in the past, please share your stories below and help me inspire others to get out there and donate. Thank you everyone for listening, I can’t thank you enough!

WOW – Danielle sure is passionate about giving blood and the ways donating can help others! It is so great to see people feel so strongly about being selfless in times of need. Thanks for taking the time to read this interview. Hopefully you all received some useful information on the importance of donating blood in the future!

Dillon H.
Promotion Development Department