Roll up your sleeve

Stanley B. Rodgers can’t wait until Saturday, and it has nothing to do with watching a baseball game or going up to the lake.

You might say it’s a red letter day for him.

On Saturday, Stanley will head over to the Red Cross office in Bloomfield, roll up his sleeve and get a needle stuck in his arm.

He hasn’t been this excited since May 13, the last time he was permitted to give blood under the 56-day rule. On Saturday, Stanley will receive his 16-gallon pin. That’s a lot of corpuscles, folks.

He does this six times a year. He is so faithful, the folks at the American Red Cross can practically set their watches by him. A few years ago, when he failed to show up on the usual day, they actually called him to see if he was OK. Another time, he showed up a day early. They smiled and told him he would have to wait another 24 hours. A few times, he was so eager to give blood he showed up early and helped them set up the equipment.

Stanley is now retired from his family’s upholstery business on Columbus Road. There are people who swear the his middle initial, “B” must stand for Blood. “O” is an equally important letter.
Stanley’s blood type is “O-negative” which is found in only 9 percent of the population.

For a man who admits he "hate needles'' you've got to admire his loyalty. He first gave blood in the 1960s at the local Red Cross headquarters on Holt Avenue. A stint in the Navy, and his involvement with the Middle Georgia CB Radio Club, further increased his awareness of the importance of fortifying our nation's blood supply. While stationed at a military base in Mississippi, he helped recruit blood donors for a young girl injured in a car accident.

“This is one way I can help people,’’ he said.

Hats off to folks like Stanley, a man who gives life to others by giving a small part of himself.