St. Barbara’s Knights rally 77 blood donors to help meet region’s needs

BLACK DIAMOND – The 28 pints of O positive blood that Gerald Korst has donated in recent years is a drop in the bucket of what he’s given over the decades he has been a regular blood donor.

For Korst, a member of St. Barbara Parish in Black Diamond, donating blood is a work of mercy, part of Catholic social teaching.

“There’s joy knowing my blood is going to help another person — actually three,” said Korst, who is certain his blood has saved lives.

“And if I can get people to donate their blood, that’s better,” added Korst, who serves as the blood drive chairman for St. Barbara’s Knights of Columbus group, with help from his wife Gay.

At a time when blood donations are especially needed, the parish rallied 77 donors for 231 pints at a recent two-day pop-up blood drive with Bloodworks Northwest — nearly five times as many donors as normal. Korst also used the drive as an opportunity to collect canned food for the local food bank.

The donated blood was whisked to a regional lab and within 24 to 48 hours was separated and processed into platelets, plasma and red blood cells for area hospitals.

Every day, nearly 900 people must donate blood to meet the needs of local patients, who can range from car accident victims to cancer patients, said Rochelle Toro, the donor resource representative for Bloodworks Northwest. “There is no substitute for blood. That’s why we need donors.”

In a normal year, about 40 parishes in Western Washington are among the churches, high schools, civic organization halls and businesses that host the Bloodworks Northwest mobile unit for donation drives.

“We are pretty tightly connected with the Catholic churches,” Toro said.

Before the pandemic, the blood bank had 25 to 30 blood drives daily; “now we only have three to eight pop-ups daily, making every single appointment even more critical to fill,” she said. “There is no substitute for blood. That’s why we need donors.”

Bloodworks Northwest was also scheduled to be at Holy Family in Kirkland and Immaculate Heart of Mary in Sedro-Woolley during January. But for Toro, St. Barbara is the first Catholic church in her South King County territory to say “Yes” to hosting a pop-up blood drive.

“I call them small, but mighty,” she said. “They are an amazing group of people; I wish I could clone them. They’re energetic, want to do the work and ‘get’ the mission.”

“If there’s a need, we’re going to go for it,” Korst said. (Early in the pandemic, the national Knights of Columbus called upon its members to donate blood as part of its Leave No Neighbor Behind program.)

With the blessing of their pastor, Father Dave Rogerson, the St. Barbara’s Knights jumped into action, working with Bloodworks Northwest to provide a safe donation experience in the parish hall — wearing masks, using an appointment system and adhering to a rigorous cleaning schedule.

By spreading the word to nearby communities like Enumclaw and Maple Valley, the blood drive donation schedule was filled.

“One hundred percent, even in these times, is amazing,” Korst said. “It’s a miracle, if you want to call it that — people still want to come and give.”

Learn more about donating blood

Every day, nearly 900 people must donate blood to meet the needs of local patients, according to Bloodworks Northwest. Follow these links for information about donor eligibility and donation sites:

Learn whether you are eligible to donate blood.

View the list of pop-up donation locations.