Happy sharing through “1 Second’s Frown”

On September 8, 2010 around 740 members of the Intl. WeLoveU Foundation held a blood drive at the Daegu-Gyeongbuk Blood Bank of Korea National Red Cross in Daegu city. This event, which was held second time after the last year, was hosted by the Intl. WeLoveU Foundation and sponsored by Gyeongbuk National University Hospital and Daegu-Gyeongbuk Blood Bank of Korean National Red Cross.

At 10 a.m., the WeLoveU members arrived at the Blood Bank of Korea National Red Cross by threes and fives, putting a smile as fresh as autumn wind on their faces. Lee Gang-min, the Director of Intl. WeLoveU Foundation, encouraged the members who donated their blood in the harsh world where individualism is getting serious, through the introductory greeting, and stated the purpose of the blood drive, “These days, even critical patients cannot get medical operations due to the lack of blood. Among many kinds of volunteer activities, saving lives is the best.”

Lee Gang-min the Director of WeLoveU Foundation and Lee Gi-nam the Dirctor of Daegu-Gyeongbuk Blood Bank of Korean National Red Cross encourage the members who participate in the blood drive.

After him, Lee Gi-nam, the Director of Daegu-Gyeongbuk Blood Bank of Korean National Red Cross, appreciated the WeLoveU members’ taking part in the blood drive. and asked them to participate in blood donation continually from now on, saying, “Blood is life. Though some say about artificial blood, there is nothing that can replace blood yet. Only through blood donation, we can save the lives of patients who need blood transfusions.”

Soon, medical examination and blood donation began in earnest. The members carefully read the instructions and filled out medical charts. They had a blood examination to check if they were in good health condition for blood donation. The faces of members, who were waiting for the result while having friendly talks with each other, looked half excited and half nervous. Among them, some members had to wait for next time, feeling sorry for low level of hemoglobin or being underweight. On the other side, those who were diagnosed as proper donors were getting on the bus for blood donation. Although they had to wait for a quite long time due to many participants, all the members waited for their turn in good order with a bright look.

Daegu IWF members participate in medical examination and blood donation.

Daegu IWF members participate in medical examination and blood donation.

Members agreed that saving lives through blood donation is a very rewarding and natural work as we live together with others. A member Kim Eun-hwa (31 years old, Shinam-dong, Dong-gu) who finished donating blood and was about to donate her blood donor card said, “As I need someone’s help when I’m faced with difficulty, I’m happy to help someone who needs my help. I’m very thankful to be able to donate blood.” A member Shin Jung-myeong (39 years old, Bisan-dong, Seo-gu) who was waiting for his turn with a serious look said, “I had ever received a blood transfusion eleven years ago due to a car accident. If there had been no blood, I cannot be here now.” And he rejoiced, saying, “Although I had a will to donate my blood, I was busy and found it hard to go for blood donation by myself. So I’m very happy to be able to donate my blood through this event.”

A member Jeong Yeon-ok (46 years old) who was a guide volunteer for the event, also talked about her experience; when her son was hospitalized due to a blood-related disease and needed to receive blood transfusion constantly, she could overcome such difficulty thanks to IWF members’ blood donation.

On September 10, Lee Gang-min the Director of Intl. WeLoveU Foundation (middle, left) donates 270 blood donation certificates to Cho Yeong-rae the Director of Gyeongbuk National University Hospital (middle, right).

“Seeing the members who have gathered to donate blood today, I am reminded of the situation of those days and feeling weepy. Because I know how desperately those who need to receive a transfusion are waiting for blood donors. I am very pleased with this event and truly give thanks to the participants for blood donation. I will also keep participating in blood donation for the rest of my life.”

The officials of Daegu-Gyeongbuk Blood Bank of Korean National Red Cross were amazed at the fervor of the IWF members who made efforts to practice neighborly love and repeatedly showed their gratitude. According to their words, when a medical center asked for blood urgently, many times they could not provide enough because of blood shortage. A nurse Kim Su-gyeong who was helping blood collecting said, “Many people participated and their looks were all bright. As the expression says, “1 second’s frown(Short pain when a needle goes into skin”, though you may have fear for the needle, if you are willing to take part in the blood donation like the IWF members, you will help many people.”

As the line of participants rarely stopped, it passed way over the expected time and closed at around 6 pm. 270 blood donation certificates of the participants were donated to Gyeongbuk National University Hospital on September 10 to be used for the patients with financial difficulty. The donated blood which is kept temporarily in blood bank will be used for the medical operation and treatment of urgent patients such as the patients with cancer and patients with leukemia etc. as a precious source of life.