MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho — As the American Red Cross continues to plea for blood donations because of its lowest shortage in a decade, a Mountain Home woman is being honored after donating a milestone level amount of blood.
Judy Lacks donated her 50th gallon of blood on Jan. 20, five days after her 80th birthday.
"Now I have to figure out something else for my bucket list," Lacks said laughingly.
Her journey to donate 50 gallons began when a friend asked her to come to a Mountain Home church blood drive in 1983. Nearly four decades later, Lacks travels every two weeks to the American Red Cross in Boise to donate blood platelets.
She told KTVB in October she made the move to travel to Boise every few weeks because her town did not have many blood drives or resources to give blood.
On the day of Lacks' milestone, her Red Cross family was there, with a cake to celebrate and a plaque to honor her achievement.
"Everybody was smiling, being happy and telling me, 'Way to go!' and that's why I sent them a card and sign it to my Red Cross family," Lacks said. "I couldn't have done it without [them]. I couldn't have. They're just family to me, all of them."
As Lacks hears about the national blood shortage, she urges everyone who is able to do their part and help too.
"I just hope and pray that people will get out and start donating even if you've never done it before, it's not a big deal to do it," Lacks said.
She does not plan on stopping donating blood anytime soon.
"I will continue, I'm already scheduled," Lacks said. "They said, 'You're done now?' I said 'No, I'm not done.' I'm already scheduled for the third of February and two weeks later and when I go to Arizona I will be donating again down there."
She added she is moving to Arizona in April to be closer to family, after living in Mountain Home for 53 years.
For ways to find a blood donation drive or services, click here.
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