KUCHING: Thirty years ago, lorry driver, Patrus anak Gajis started a trend which would catch on with his family members – donating blood for a good cause. Today, Patrus, 50, his wife, Gimem anak Bosem, 48, daughter, Tiffany, 26, son, Timothy, 21 and niece, Vanessa,24, have donated a total of 214 pints of blood and more family members intend to join them.
Gimem, a Bidayuh from Kampung Skibang in Bau, said even before marrying Patrus, she knew he was always concerned with helping others by donating blood.
“After giving birth to Tiffany, I decided to emulate his gesture of kindness and over the years, the rest of the family decided to follow suit,” she explained.
For the record, Patrus has, so far, donated 96 pints, Gimem 62 pints, Tiffrany 22 pints, Timothy eight pints and Vanessa 16 pints. “Our youngest child, Michelle, who is 18, has not made up her mind because she is afraid of the needle. But it will be a matter of time before she does,” laughed Gimem.
The family was among about 100 donors, guests and well wishers attending the 2017 Blood Donors Appreciation Ceremony at the Boulevard Shopping Mall here recently.
The ceremony was officiated by Local Government and Housing Minister, Datuk Dr Sim Kui Hian. Dr Sim, in his speech, thanked the donors for their noble gestures, pointing out that the Sarawak General Hospital needed 250 pints of blood every day and so far, the public had contributed 15,000 pints of blood this year.
He said: “We spend RM100,000 every month screening the blood of donors and ensure we have enough supply for our patients. We really appreciate your generosity which has helped save lives.”
Also present at the ceremony were the secretary of the Malaysian Blood Donors Society, Alan Chew, Sarawak General Hospital Deputy Director, Dr Hayati Jaafar, blood specialist, Dr Wong Yi Shen and representatives of organisations, societies and private companies that contributed to the cause.
