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A boy with half a heart is saved by Red Cross blood donors

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Mom repays the gift with blood drives at Intuit

By Alex Keilty

Anna-mary Geist holds up a photo of her son in hospital when he was born with half a heart 13 years ago.
Photo by Alex Keilty / American Red Cross

They found out something was wrong when Anna-mary Geist had an ultrasound at 12 weeks pregnant: her baby’s heart wasn’t formed properly.

“They told us his heart defect was so severe that he wouldn’t make it to delivery,” Anna-mary recalled.

At one of her subsequent prenatal checkups, the doctor said, ‘I don’t know how he is still surviving,’ remembered Anna-mary. “You hope for the best, you pray a lot,” she said.

But survive he did. All the way through a full-term pregnancy until he could be delivered by c-section to be born at noon on September 1, 2010 with two teams of doctors waiting for him in the delivery room, nobody knowing what to expect. Baby Samuel was immediately rushed to a nearby children’s hospital, accompanied by Anna-mary’s husband, Jerry. Anna-mary didn’t see their baby again until after 10 p.m. that night.

“Oh my gosh, he is so cute!” That was her first thought when she saw Samuel, known as Sam, who was severely swollen from fetal hydrops, with wires attached all around him, along with tubes for breathing and feeding.

Their baby was born with Kabuki syndrome – a rare congenital disorder that can affect many body systems, including the heart, intestines, kidneys, and skeleton. Sam had a congenital heart defect – HLHS – hypoplastic left heart syndrome. HLHS is when the left side of the heart does not form correctly, and in Sam’s case, not at all, which affects blood flow through the heart and out into the body

Sam was born with half a heart and required open-heart surgery at 36 hours old. Photo courtesy of Anna-mary Geist

“He basically has half a heart,” explained Anna-mary.

At 36 hours old, their baby needed open-heart surgery that required several  blood transfusions. That is how Anna-mary’s journey with the American Red Cross began.

“I came to the Red Cross because the people who receive Red Cross donations are the people who saved him,” said Anna-mary, about the donors who provided Sam’s life-saving blood transfusions.

Anna-mary had donated blood before Sam came along. But after he was born, his family – which includes his father Jerry, and sisters Emily, 15, and Julia, 10 – began to host an annual Red Cross blood drive. They hold it in the first week of September in their hometown in Massachusetts to commemorate Sam’s birthday and as a way to give back to the community.

An open-heart surgery at two days old was not Sam’s last. In his life he has had three open-heart surgeries that all required blood transfusions, and 17 surgeries in all.

“He is a fighter. He clearly wants to be here for something,” said Anna-mary. “We are just along for the ride.”

Today, Sam is a happy and active 13-year-old who attends regular school with some support and plays adaptive sports every week – baseball, basketball, soccer and lacrosse – with other special needs children. His mom says in addition to being the player, sometimes he plays the coach and dresses in a suit, while other days he’s a cheerleader when the mood strikes him.

Sam, as a toddler, greets blood donors at his annual Red Cross blood drive. Photo courtesy of Anna-mary Geist
Sam’s father Jerry, mother Anna-mary and sisters Emily and Julia host an annual Red Cross blood drive and his mother hosts quarterly blood drives at Intuit’s global headquarters.
Photo courtesy of Anna–mary Geist

“He is such a gift. If there is a way we can give back to someone else, why wouldn’t we? Blood donations are easy… and free!” she said.

In addition to Sam’s annual birthday blood drive, in 2023 Anna-mary started hosting quarterly blood drives at Intuit’s global headquarters in Mountain View, California. She is employed by Intuit as an indirect tax research manager and project manager. Anna-mary most recently donated blood on May 7, 2024 at a blood drive at Intuit where 30 of her fellow employees made appointments to donate as well.

Sam also appreciates the blood donors who saved his life. He greets them at his blood drives with the biggest smile. Anna-mary said, “He knows the gift he has been given.”

Photos of the blood drive at Intuit on May 7, 2024 can be viewed here.

Losing and Gaining a Friend: A Blood Donation Journey

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by Alex Keilty

American Red Cross Regional CEO Hanna Malak (left) celebrates his friend Rodrigo Galindo’s 50th blood donation to the Red Cross at the San José blood center.

“We were the same age, we went to Boy Scout camp together,” says Rodrigo Galindo recalling his friend Steven. “Our dads served together on the same ship in the US Navy.”

When Steven became sick with leukemia, Rodrigo was about 13 years old and felt powerless to help. And then when Steven lost his battle with cancer, Rodrigo’s whole family mourned the loss. “We were god brothers,” he says.

Never forgetting his friend and the importance of blood donations for cancer treatment, Rodrigo donated blood for the first time in high school as soon as he was old enough. Since then, he has become a regular blood donor and recently celebrated an extra special accomplishment: his 50th blood donation to the American Red Cross.

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The Gift of Life Born From Family Tragedy 

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By Bob Loftis

Photo courtesy of Madhu Amesur – American Red Cross

Madhu Amesur has turned her family’s heartbreaking tragedy into an ongoing gift of life for the Red Cross, globally. In January of 2023, Madhu lost her son, Dilip, to a sudden and devastating health crisis. Dilip was 30, happily married and the devoted father of three little boys. Madhu, in deep grief, continued in her work as a blood donor ambassador at the Contra Costa Red Cross Blood Donation Center in Pleasant Hill, California where she has volunteered since 2006. Madhu fondly remembers the staff at the center who contributed to a fund for Dilip’s children; a community gesture that moved her deeply.  

“Last year, on my son’s first birthday after his passing, I wanted to do something special to honor and remember him. At my blood donor ambassador shift, I got the idea to ask my friends to donate blood and call it “Dilip’s Gift of Life,” said Madhu. “Soon so many people all over the world donated blood; it was such a joy for me to know that after his loss something good could be done to honor him. My mission on earth is to spread awareness for the everyday gift of life, encouraging people to donate blood and volunteer. We want as much awareness in the community as possible. The gift of life is precious, and anyone can give it.” 

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Saving Lives Through One Special Promise to a Beloved Grandmother 

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Photo courtesy of Olga Vasquez
American Red Cross

By Selena Nisha

“My Grandmother basically raised me after my father passed away because my mom was working full time to support us kids,” said Olga Vasquez, whose father died when she was seven-years-old. “She made me crocheted blankets, embroidered dish towels, and gave me China sets and glassware that she had been given as wedding sets when she was young. We’d go to the San José Flea Market almost every month. She would teach me how to cook recipes she learned from her mom, we even enjoyed watching soap operas together, “General Hospital” being our favorite,” Olga reminisced.  

Olga’s unbreakable bond with her grandmother led to a commitment to the American Red Cross. Olga remembers the time when her grandmother needed three blood transfusions after she underwent a heart surgery. During those first three years after the surgery, Olga states she became aware of how much the community relied on the blood supplied by Red Cross blood donors. These vulnerable moments impacted Olga greatly and inspired her to help anyone facing a crisis like the one her grandmother experienced.  

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“The most unusual deployment I have ever had”

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Photo courtesy of Ann Kuchins / American Red Cross

Ann Kuchins’ 1 yr Reflection of Typhoon Mawar Experience in Guam

Ann Kuchins recounts Typhoon Mawar as a unique deployment that gifted her with first-time experiences, some of which she could not have anticipated.

As a Red Crosser, Ann has prepared to volunteer several times in disaster-affected areas, including the fatal wildfire in Paradise, California.  Going to Guam was “the most unusual deployment I have ever had,” said Ann

The typhoon that hit Guam in May 2023 was by far the worst the island had experienced in the last 20 years, though typhoons were nothing new to Guam.  

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