Richard Henderson smiles as he gives his 200th pint of blood to the American Red Cross on Thursday, Feb. 17, 2012, in Charlotte.

Richard Henderson may have had a needle in his arm on Thursday afternoon, but he was the one keeping the Red Cross blood donor staff in stitches.

The long-time donor was at the donor center in Charlotte to give his 200th pint of life-saving blood.

“I’ve been giving blood for 60 years? That can’t be right, because I’m only 30,” he joked.

When asked why he donates, he got a sly smile on his face and replied,

“Because someone from the Red Cross calls and tells me to.”

Richard has the blood type O-positive, and type O blood accounts for nearly half of all blood ordered daily by hospitals. In addition to that, Richard’s blood carries unique antigens that make him a suitable donor for premature babies and newborns.

“My mom was a nurse, so Dad would hear all the stories about people in need of blood,” said Richard’s daughter, Carmen.

That’s why when Richard gets the call to give, he always answers.

He recalls donating blood for the first time in the 1940s when he was serving with the U.S. Navy in the Philippines. In fact, Carmen says, Richard was donating blood before the Red Cross even kept track of how many units an individual had given.

“So really, this is probably only the 200th pint that’s been recorded. I’m sure he’s given much more,” she said.

No matter the exact number, one thing is certain: Richard has given life-saving blood to hundreds of people, and that’s enough to make anyone smile.

To make an appointment to donate blood, call 1800 RED CROSS.

Richard Henderson sports his new American Red Cross hat and views a certificate he received for donating 200 pints to the American Red Cross.

The Red Cross celebrates Black History Month in honor of Douglass and the countless more individuals who have contributed to our organization. We encourage eligible donors of all backgrounds to make an appointment to donate blood this February.

Watch the news story News 14 Carolina did about local donors and recipients.

From organizing blood drives to donating blood, African Americans make unique contributions to America’s blood supply. More than 50 percent of people of African descent have type O blood. About 20 percent of African Americans also have type B blood, which is higher than other populations. Several rare blood types are also particular to the African American community.

Learn more about blood and diversity

Post-transfusion complications can decrease when patients receive blood from donors of the same ethnic background. And that is important in cases when a patient needs blood every few weeks to help treat serious diseases like sickle cell.

Take Ishia Gattis, for example. Ishia has sickle cell and therefore needs blood transfusions monthly in order to stay healthy. She even wrote a children’s book about sickle cell after her oldest child kept asking why mommy had to keep going to the hospital.

Watch Ishia Gattis’ story

A Red Cross volunteer supports this military family at Quantico Marine Base in Virgina.

In January, the American Red Cross began a program to provide information and services to military families on the day their loved one leaves for boot camp.

During the briefings at the Military Entrance Processing Station, a Red Cross provides information about Red Cross emergency communication services.

Emergency communication allows immediate family members to utilize the Red Cross in order to contact their service member in the event of an emergency. With the information the family provides, the Red Cross has the ability to locate the service member and relay the message. It is then up to the military member’s command to approve a leave of absence.

When Sheila Parnell’s son, Brian, went into the service in the Navy, the Red Cross gave her family a packet with information on how to get help should a family emergency arise.

“So when our emergency happened, I knew where to go,” said the Grover, N.C., resident.

Sheila’s husband, Darrell Parnell, has been battling health problems and injuries for years. He’s had triple bypass surgery and was involved in a severe automobile accident.

Disabled and out of work, Darrell suffered another heart attack while Brian was away from home with the Navy.

“I was totally on my own besides one young son, and I was overwhelmed,” Sheila said.

She contacted the Red Cross to bring Brian home early, which allowed her to continue working while Brian cared for Darrell.

The Red Cross volunteer Sheila worked with followed up with her to ensure everything was going well.

“She stayed with me every step of the way,” Sheila said. “You may think that you’ll never need that help – but you don’t know. At the snap of a finger, your whole life can be turned upside down.”

Every year in our Carolina Piedmont Region, the Red Cross provides this service for nearly 1,000 military families.

It is important that military families (spouses, parents, significant other) prepare ahead of time to have the service member’s name, rank, unit name, and physical address available to give to the caseworker. The caseworker is dependent upon the information that the family provides to locate the service member. Without this information, there can be a delay in getting the emergency message sent. The Red Cross provides refrigerator magnets and wallet cards that make it easier for families to keep the information in one easy to access document. In a crisis, it is difficult to search through multiple records in order to find the information that is needed.

Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces coordinator Robin Callahan said, “I am honored by the opportunity to be of assistance to our service members and their loved ones. We at the Red Cross, express our greatest appreciation for their choice to serve this country.”

Check out how GQ is supporting the American Red Cross through offering incentives to those who donate:

Whether it’s helping neighbors down the street, across the country, or around the world, one organization is always there. The Gentlemen’s Fund initiative, Land Rover, and Jason Sudeikis are supporting the American Red Cross, the nation’s premier emergency-response organization.

The Red Cross is there through disaster—from house fires to hurricanes—to help people prevent, prepare for, and respond to emergencies. By providing vehicles and financial assistance, Land Rover lends a valuable hand to the Red Cross in its response to everyday disasters. Each year, the American Red Cross assists victims of nearly 70,000 national disasters and provides aid to more than 90 million people with international disaster management and disease-prevention activities.

Ervie Baker and her daughter keep warm under a Red Cross blanket while firefighters work to extinguish the blaze in Ervie's Charlotte home on Saturday evening.

Our Disaster Action Teams (DAT) are made up of volunteers who go “on-call” for a week at a time to respond to home fires and other disasters that happen around the clock.

This week’s DAT went from one fire to the next, as five blazes erupted:

• A Saturday evening fire on Leigh Avenue in Charlotte that displaced two adults
• A Sunday morning fire that displaced a single mother and her two children in Cornelius
• A Sunday afternoon apartment fire that affected three families
• A Sunday evening fire in Charlotte that displaced three adults and five children
• A Sunday fire in charlotte that displaced a woman and her FIVE grandchildren

In each instance, our volunteers were on the scene immediately. DAT members work with each family on an individual basis to assess their needs and provide help for food, clothing, shelter and other emergency items.

Our volunteers will continue to work with these families over the next few days and refer them to our partner agencies to start long-term recovery.

Want to help? You can help victims of disasters like these home fires by making a donation to American Red Cross Disaster Relief.

“Ever wonder how your blood type is connected to your social media or marketing personality? We did too, so we created a graphic to show you.”

What’s your personality?

The last thing a Rowan couple wanted was a phone call in the middle of the night saying their home was on fire.

The pair – who have a 2-year-old – had just purchased the single-wide mobile home and were making repairs to it while living there. Yesterday, the husband found black mold under the dishwasher, so the entire family decided to stay with friends until they could safely re-enter the home.

Little did they know how smart that decision was. They were awakened by the phone call from neighbors that night saying the home was on fire.

Our volunteers met the couple at their home, which was still smoldering. The Red Cross provided the couple with assistance for food and clothing, as well as cleaning supplies. Through working with our community partners, our volunteers were also able to refer the couple to other agencies for things like furniture and counseling.

Want to help people who experience disasters? Visit www.redcross.org and make a contribution to disaster relief.

Download fire safety information

Wesley Parrish, a senior at UNCC, was entered into the drawing for the iPad 2 after donating blood at the “49ers For Life” drive on January 12, 2012. Parrish has participated in the university’s drive for the past few years.

“I gave blood for the first time two years ago and have given several times a year since then,” he said. “I give blood because it makes me feel good to know that I am helping someone.”

When Parrish isn’t saving lives by giving blood, he is juggling a major in sociology and minors in gerontology and public health. He’s also a huge supporter of Charlotte athletics and is an active member and treasurer of the school’s swim club.

“We are so grateful for all the students and faculty at UNCC who made the blood drive a success,” said Joyce Brendel, chief executive officer of the American Red Cross Carolinas Blood Services Region. “We just really want to show our donors how much we appreciate them and their commitment to helping save lives.”

Even though the holiday season is over, the need for blood is constant. Like the Emergency Room of a hospital, the American Red Cross must be prepared to respond to patient emergencies with blood products 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Through the everyday support and generosity of blood and platelet donors, the Red Cross can be prepared to do this day-in and day-out, no matter when or where these blood products are needed.

There is no substitute for blood and volunteer donors are the only source. Blood can be safely donated every 56 days. Platelets can be safely given every two weeks, up to 24 times a year. Most healthy people age 17 and older, 16 with parental consent, who weigh at least 110 pounds, are eligible to donate blood and platelets. Donors who are 18 and younger must also meet specific height and weight requirements. For more information or to schedule an appointment to donate, please call 1-800-RED CROSS or visit http://redcrossblood.org. Call 1-877-975-2835 to make an appointment to donate platelets.

In addition to working with first responders at the scene of a fire, our volunteers support them during other emergencies as well.

Last night, our volunteers supported nearly 100 first responders who were searching for a Rhodhiss man who has been missing for two days. Volunteers handed out drinks and snacks during the search.

While operations like this one can be difficult, it’s important for the Red Cross to be there, supporting the people who are serving our community.

Read more on this search and to learn how you can help

American Red Cross volunteers in Rhodhiss distributed drinks and snacks to first responders looking for a missing man.

craigconnects teamed up with the American Red Cross on the #perfectgift campaign this past December. The idea of the campaign was for people to tell me, and the American Red Cross, what their #perfectgift would be. This gift could be for themselves or someone else, and for each mention across the web, until December 31, 2011, I donated up to $10k to the American Red Cross. The money was used to support the purchase of military comfort kits for our troops.

The American Red Cross shared that, “We think a perfect gift would be the opportunity to show all of you the very real impact that your donations have on the people helped by Red Cross every year!” I explained that, “my #perfectgift is when I’m able to give to those who do such good stuff.”

Eileen Unger posted on my Facebook page, that her #perfectgift would be:

To take advantage of every opportunity to ‘make a difference’ and to have the voice and ability to encourage others to do the same.

Kathleen Dean wrote on the Red Cross’ Facebook page to share her story:

Many years ago, my husband asked, ‘So what do you want for Christmas?’ My reply, ‘That you donate blood on a regular basis next year.’ Adding, ‘It is the gift of life that keeps on giving.’ He did that too.

We also reached out to the community to ask who made a charitable donation on someone’s behalf as a gift this year? We received a large variety of answers.
On Twitter…

@annekbradley said,

This year , I donated to Aid to Victims of Domestic Violence, my dad’s favoriote charity, in his honor. #perfectgift

@benmangan

donated to #PolarisProject, which fights modern day slavery, in memory of [his] grandmother, Florence Mangan.

People shared photos of their #perfectgift, too.

@LaurenJJohnson shared a picture of her giving blood:

the gift that saves the day through @RedCross!

@jerryjamesstone even tweeted at Craig,

Hey @craignewmark I’d like to match your @redcross donation as the #perfectgift for the first 100 tweeps who respond to you.

Jason Wilhoite told the Red Cross that

The perfect gift would be to see 10,000 donated even if you don’t get 10,000 comments. Now that would be a great gift.

I’m happy to announce that I was able to give the full $10k.

I hope folks will keep giving now that the holidays are over. As the American Red Cross tweeted recently,

…join us in 2012 and give hope to people who need it year-round.