The number is more than impressive: the 50 people who met at the Volksbank Mönchengladbach have donated almost 780 liters of blood in recent years. There they were honored by the German Red Cross (DRK) for their efforts. Because together they volunteered their blood 1,725 times. Bertold Nielsen, chairman of the DRK district association Mönchengladbach, further calculated: In total, more than 3,000 bags were collected.
Sven Frauenkron, general representative of the cooperative bank, was impressed by their performance when welcoming the blood donors: “The voluntary commitment that they have shown for many years is invaluable. That deserves our deepest respect.” Bertold Nielsen and his deputy Jochen Klenner, who is also a member of the CDU state parliament, presented the certificates and a gift to the men and women who gave their blood 50, 75, 100, 125, 150 and 175 times have to save lives.
The blood donors themselves don’t make much of a fuss about their voluntary work. This was confirmed once again by Dettlef Brückner, the “star of the evening,” as he said when handing over the certificate for 175 donations so far. The 77-year-old donated for the first time in 1970 and summed it up succinctly: “The priority is always: saving people’s lives with a free donation.”
Even though he and the 49 other invited guests set a good example, a negative development can be observed in the city, said district association leader Nielsen: “The commitment is great. However, fewer and fewer people want to donate. Above all, we are missing young people.” There is always a shortage, especially during the holiday season.
Anita Nielsen can confirm this, although the DRK is doing a lot to point out the life-saving need for blood donations: “For example, we have been working with the vocational college for around six years. There, the donation dates are communicated to the students via loudspeakers.” A total of four teams are regularly deployed in the city. Bertold Nielsen adds: “Hotspots include the Neuwerk and Rheindahlen districts, with up to 150 donors regularly.”
