Jane Bornhorst made her milestone fifth lifetime donation during the June 20 blood drive in Fort Loramie.
Courtesy photo
FORT LORAMIE – Members of the Boerger family started the day by placing a blood drop beanie baby doll on their mother Irene’s grave. They spent the rest of June 20 welcoming 274 donors to the St. Michael’s Hall “Country Fun Blood Drive.”
“We thought mom would like that,” said Irene’s daughter Diane Meyer. “We found a box of them in her old supplies. I thought maybe she could influence something today!”
For the second year the blood drive was dedicated to Irene Boerger who served as the Community Blood Center account representative in Shelby County for 38 years and passed away in 2021.
A year ago, the family set an ambitious goal of recruiting 500 donors, hoping to surpass the record of 495 donors set June 21, 2000, at St. Michael’s Hall. There are now six blood drives per year at St. Michael’s, so last year’s total of 358 donors for a single blood drive went well beyond CBC’s expectation.
Tuesday’s blood drive reached 115% of CBC’s collection goal with 274 donors, including 257 whole blood and 17 platelet and plasma donors. That total represented an 11% increase over the 2021 Country Fun Blood Drive.
The “Country Fun” theme included a drawing for two tickets to “Country Concert 23” in Fort Loramie, a tradition started by Irene. Meyer rang Irene’s iconic cow bell every half hour to announce door prize winners of the “Give a Pint, Get a Pint” $5 gift coins for the Fort Loramie Brewing Company.
“I’m really pleased,” said Meyer, who coordinated the blood drive with Jane Poeppelman and Roger Bender. Myer gave platelets for her 352nd lifetime donation and was joined by her sisters Sharon Brandewie making her 91st lifetime donation and Nancy Havener making her 115th lifetime donation.
“I think people come in and they’re not influenced by the gifts. People don’t come for the gifts, not here, not in this community.”
Volunteers kept the tradition of thanking donors with hot sandwiches and ice cream in the Donor Café. All six St. Michael’s blood drives are sponsored by the Fort Loramie American Legion Ladies Auxiliary, the Fort Loramie Community Service Club, St. Michael’s Church and the St. Michael’s Knights of St. John.
A continued goal at St. Michael’s is to attract first-time donors, welcome high school students to the summer blood drive, and to encourage occasional donors to give more frequently.
Jane Bornhorst made her milestone fifth lifetime donation and won a “Pint for a Pint” door prize. Joann Martin got a Wagner gift card from Diane for being one of four first-time donors.
Both women are cancer survivors, and both underwent surgery to remove their thyroid gland, Bornhorst in 2010 and Martin in 2020. They are glad to be part of the legacy of Irene and Shelby County blood drives.
“I used to run around with Irene’s daughter Nancy,” said Martin. “I decided it was time. I always wanted to, and decided it was time to stop making excuses.”
“I do remember Irene,” said Bornhorst. “My dad was a cancer survivor for 19 years and got lots of blood. I thought, “I’ve got to start giving.’”
“I believe in Fort Loramie,” said Myer. “It’s generational. If mom and dad donate, I’m probably going to donate. The kids here that we see as first time donors, I’d say the majority, their parents donate. They go to college, and we might lose them for a while. But you hope they will come back.”
