At 18, I faced a life-defining moment back in Vietnam. My father was rushed into emergency surgery for a ruptured artery. I remember standing in the hallway, holding a pen with trembling hands to sign his surgical consent forms. I was legally an adult, yet I felt so small and helpless. That day, it was the blood from anonymous donors that saved his life.
Now, living in Metro Vancouver, I’ve made a promise to myself to 'pay it forward.' I made my first donation recently to ensure that another son or daughter, pacing nervously outside an ER, doesn't have to face loss. I want to be that 'anonymous stranger' who gives someone else’s father a second chance. I am committed to being a donor for life because blood is a universal language of hope that knows no borders.
