Hubert-Peter Beneke regularly goes to donate blood: Record-breaking: Stader (73) donates more than 100 liters of blood

Blood donations save lives: That’s why blood donation services rely on volunteers who come by to give blood. Hardly anyone in the region has donated more blood than Hubert-Peter Beneke (73) from Stade. And he’s not thinking about stopping any time soon. He has already donated more than 100 liters of blood over the decades.

Numerous blood donor cards filled

Recently, Beneke learned during a blood donation at the local German Red Cross branch in Stade that he had set a national record. He had just received a new blood donor card. The old donor card was full again – no wonder, considering that Beneke has already donated more than 200 times. How many donor cards has he filled over the decades? The former savings bank business economist and marketing manager cannot remember for the life of him – and he doesn’t care, because he acts “out of conviction”.

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Age restrictions have been lifted

As a substitute for military service, Beneke committed himself to volunteering in the rescue service and in disaster relief. Here he experienced a number of serious accidents and fatal illnesses. For decades he was involved in various aid organizations – and experienced first-hand how important blood donations are. Half a liter of blood is taken per donation, so Beneke has soon donated 103 liters of blood.

“I could have donated a lot more blood,” says Beneke. In the meantime, he had to stop due to his age. In 2023, however, the federal government lifted the rigid age restrictions. Previously, there was an age limit of 60 for first-time donors and 68 for repeat donors, so Beneke had to take a forced break. The new legal regulation was intended to prevent people willing to donate from being unnecessarily excluded from donating.

31,000 donors honored

An aptitude test every five years

However, according to the blood donation service, a so-called “medical donor suitability test” is carried out at the first donation and now every five years from the age of 60. In any case, a doctor’s consultation is mandatory before a donation, and health data is recorded using a questionnaire. The minimum weight for each donor is 50 kilograms. In view of an increasingly aging society, this is a sensible decision, says Beneke. Annoyingly, the record donor from Stade only found out about the new legal regulation by chance from the media – despite inquiries to the DRK blood donation service in the meantime. There is clearly still room for improvement at the DRK when it comes to communication.