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

Posted on June 12, 2024 by redcrossnorcalstaff

Mom repays the gift with blood drives at Intuit

By Alex Keilty

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

“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.

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Losing and Gaining a Friend: A Blood Donation Journey

Posted on May 30, 2024 by redcrossnorcalstaff

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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Sound The Alarm: 452 Homes Are Now Safer Thanks to Red Cross Volunteers, Local Fire Department and Community Partners

Posted on May 14, 2024 by Martin Gagliano

1,236 smoke alarms installed throughout the Northern California Coastal Region in April

Did you know that if a fire starts in your home you may have as little as two minutes to escape? During a fire, early warning from a working smoke alarm plus a fire escape plan that has been practiced regularly, can save you and your loved ones by cutting the risk of dying in half.

The American Red Cross responds to home fires more than any other disaster combined and for that reason, in April, our, along with local fire departments and community partners, installed 1,236 free smoke alarms, making 452 homes safer and provided home fire prevention and safety information to 1,210 local residents.

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A Humanitarian Retires: A Fond Farewell to Mo Ghandehari

Posted on October 30, 2023 by larrydietz

It is often said that humanitarians are people dedicated to helping others, especially those in need. They work in stressful and difficult conditions. They are motivated by a strong sense of compassion and empathy and are driven by a desire to make a difference in the world.

Mo (center) with Service to the Armed Forces Directror Nikki Rowe (L) and Sr. Disaster Program Manager Ginny Ortiz (R) at his retirement celebration in October. Photo by Violet Nguyen/American Red Cross.

There can be no better example of a humanitarian than Mo Ghandehari, who will be retiring after almost a quarter century of service to the Red Cross. Mo started as a Disaster Action Team (DAT) volunteer helping people in a variety of disaster situations. His unwavering commitment and passion led him to explore other roles within Disaster Services and International Services. His exceptional dedication and leadership abilities quickly ascended him to prominent positions, earning admiration and respect of colleagues across the organization.

During his service to the Red Cross Mo displayed a depth of compassion and empathy that few can develop. Mo has also shown a high degree of selflessness as he is always willing to put the needs of others before his own. He has devoted countless hours of service to the Red Cross.

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“Pulling at Your Heartstrings”: A Volunteer Reflects on 13+ Years of Service

Posted on October 26, 2023 by Barbara Wood

As an American Red Cross volunteer since 2010, Roxanne Anderson has deployed to more than 35 disasters across the continental United States and several island deployments including the islands of Guam in June 2023 and the American Virgin Islands in 2017. She is one of those special volunteers who has, “been there, done that.”

*Roxanne has held a wide variety of jobs in her 35+ deployments, including in Georgia following a tornado in May 2011. Photo courtesy Roxanne Anderson*

Roxanne, who lives in San Jose, joined the Red Cross after spending 30 years as a California Highway Patrol officer. She’s done a wide array of Red Cross roles, including disaster response feeding, sheltering, managing logistics, driving an emergency response vehicle (ERV), supply and transportation.

States she has been sent to, in addition to her home state of California, include Illinois, Georgia, Missouri, Connecticut, Colorado, Arizona, New Jersey, Washington, North Texas, South Carolina, North Carolina, US Virgin Island, Oklahoma, Florida and Guam. She has responded to floods, hurricanes, wildfires, a gas pipeline explosion and multi-structure fires, tornadoes and mass shootings.

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Meet Tom Tanner, Regional Excellence in Disaster Services Award winner

Posted on October 3, 2023 by larrydietz

“Being able to make a difference,” is what motivates Tom Tanner, Red Cross Silicon Valley Chapter volunteer and winner of the Regional Excellence in Disaster Services Award.

Tom is one of those unsung heroes who just does what is needed without being asked. Tom’s dedication to the Red Cross evolved from his family and his midwestern values.

“My maternal grandmother was a Red Cross Gray Lady during my youth, possibly even during WWII, who drove more than 60 miles to the nearest Army base to serve the troops and over 100 miles to donate blood regularly. My father’s aunt was also a volunteer in the 1930s, so it runs deep in my family.”

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