There’s the old saying about how special it is to be 1 in million. But Ira Riklis would tell you that you might have what it takes to be one in 14 million! How? Just by donating blood. Less than 38 percent of people are eligible to do so, but when you consider the total population of the U.S., that still leaves more than 116 million people who can donate if they choose to.
But out of that total, fewer than 8 million people a year actually make donations. That may sound pretty good, but it’s not. Although fewer than 5 million people need donations, each person may need many units of blood. The result is that donations are falling further behind the need each year. If everyone who could donate came out in force, there’d be no problem. Since they don’t, it’s important to encourage more people to make regular donations throughout the year. Ira Riklis makes it a point to do that, and encourages you to do the same.