Why I volunteer…
“ In 2012 I saw an advert for Honda motorcycles, who at that time were sponsoring "Blood Bikes". I'd never heard of Blood Bikes before, so googled them and found out about the Nationwide Association of Blood Bikes, and that the first groups had originated in the London area in the 1960's
I was a taxi driver at the time, and saw how much our NHS were having to pay for taxis to deliver their blood during the night. Because I couldn't give blood, I thought it'd be a great way to help out, save our NHS some money, and satisfy my love of motorcycles, all in one go.
I contacted the Nationwide Association of Blood Bikes, only to find out we didn't have a local group in my area. I was however pleased to find out that a representative was coming here to give a presentation to those who might like to start a group... The rest as they say, is history.
We formed Northumbria Blood Bikes and had our first AGM in September 2012. In February 2014 we went live with our first NHS Trust. We had 24 riders, one second hand bike, no cars or controllers but tonnes of enthusiasm.
To my surprise and delight, we went on to become one of the biggest, best and busiest Blood Bike groups in the UK, culminating in us receiving the Queens award for voluntary services in 2017.
I have met many new friends, from all walks of life, who have the same vision as myself, to give a helping hand to our brilliant NHS.
I have previously held the post of Rota Manager and currently hold that of Secretary. I am a rider, driver and fundraiser, but have done control in the past. I personally consider the roll of controller to be one of the hardest and most demanding, and have the upmost respect for those who carry out these duties.
As a working man, shifts on Blood Bikes can be demanding and not for everyone. I often ask people, "If your boss came up to you and asked you to do a 12 hour night shift on a Saturday night, outdoors in the rain, but you'd get double time and time off in lieu, would you be huffing and puffing and asking if you had to do it, chances are you would". Ask a Blood Biker if they'd do it for free, and you'd get a "yes I'll do that" (we are of course all mad).
My most memorable moment was when I was dispatched to deliver Blood to one of our hospitals some 20 to 25 minutes up the road. It was (as usual) raining quite heavily, and the job, although not classed as an emergency, was classified as urgent. I collected the Blood and made safe progress through the rain, all the while thinking, what on earth am I doing here. By the time I got to the Hospital, I was soaked through, cold and still thinking, what on earth am I doing here. As I squelched into the Pathology lab I was what can only be described as " pounced on" by one of the lab assistants, who grabbed the box of Blood from me, handed it straight to a young girl in a white coat, and as she rushed out of the room, came back to me and apologised for calling out a volunteer in this weather. He then explained that the Blood was for a new born baby, who was born prematurely and was fighting for life. I left the Hospital in a bit of a numb state and as I'm a smoker (yes I know, It's a filthy habit) I reached for my cigs and tried to light up the most soggy tab you have ever seen. As I stood there in the rain, trying to smoke my soggy tab, I thought to myself, that's what I'm doing here.
As I was the Rota Manager at the time, I was tasked some months later, along with our Training Officer, to carry out some temperature testing for the same hospital. On arriving back at the Pathology lab, I bumped into the head of Hematology and asked him if he knew of the case I'd delivered blood for some months earlier. He did know, and told me that the baby who was fighting for life had survived and was doing well. (I get goose bumps every time I tell this story, and as I write, I have them now).
It Isn't very often we get to find out who is receiving our deliveries, it's even more rare to find out the outcome for those concerned. So I consider myself very lucky and privileged, to be able to tell this tale. Most of the time we spend on shift, is pretty much run of the mill, but to those who are relying on the products we carry, it's much more Important.
My name is Gary Annan and that’s why I volunteer for Northumbria Blood Bikes.”
#TimeToSayThanks #VolunteersWeek