Charlotte, North Carolina
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Don
Don Brown is a kind, humble and generous man. He’s quick to crack a joke and faster to crack a smile. It’s easy to like Don. It’s even easier when you learn just how generous he truly is.
Don has been donating platelets as long as I have been alive. In December 2016, he made his 200th donation with us. His son Donnie’s leukemia diagnosis in 1988 inspired Don to begin donating platelets as often as he was allowed in an effort to help Donnie and others like him.
Cancer patients are the No. 1 recipients of blood products, and Don was determined to do all he could for those in need.
As fate would have it, Don and Donnie were able to connect with the Baptist minister who donated his bone marrow to help in Donnie’s treatment. Don and Ray developed a wonderful friendship through a bond few of us can understand. The two men began donating platelets together, and did so side-by-side every two weeks until Ray passed away in January 2013.
Don continued to make lifesaving platelet donations every two weeks, until earlier this year when he “retired.” Even though he stepped away from the donor chair, Don will always be part of the our family.
And his lifesaving legacy isn’t ending any time soon either. We was able to make a donation in his name to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to continue helping patients in need.