Calgary man marks 1000th gift of life
Posted Aug 27, 2013 11:57 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s a feat few ever experience but Tuesday morning one local man was added to an elite group.
Doug Turner, 78, celebrated his 1000th blood donation along side his family and friends.
For Turner, it’s been 52 years in the making to get to this point.
His secret to success: perseverance, laughter and maybe a little fun here and there at the nurses’ expense.
“Oh and I’ve taken a few hard times from the girls too,” he laughs. “They let you know when you’re acting up.”
“It’s been a long haul,” he tells 660News. “52 years and I’ll be retiring in a month’s time from donating when I hit 79 years of age.”
Turner says it was an amazing atmosphere that kept him coming back, time and time again.
Nurse Kathy Yanosik has been poking the former Mount Royal professor’s arms for 32 of those years.
She believes his secret to success has more to do with a clean lifestyle and loving family.
“He’s a family man, he always talks about his wife, his kids and his grandchildren,” says Yanosik who adds his ‘infectious laugh’ will be missed.
“Oh yes! He’s a story teller if you didn’t know that!”
Turner has been donating blood longer than he’s been married.
This year he celebrated his 50th wedding anniversary, his wife Eileen says she couldn’t be more proud.
She was in attendance along with their son, daughter-in-law and three grandsons.
When asked about whether the boys plan to donate, Eileen smiled “I think he’ll have a lot of encouraging words for them, it’s been good!”
His wife has 300 donations herself under her belt.
Next month he plans to quit cold turkey, after that he says he should have more time to finish his fourth book.
