"When you're being so brave with that, I'm gonna give you a special surprise," three-year-old William said to his father, Nik Venema.
The toddler had just seen his father donate blood at a clinic in a 91原创 church on a sunny Tuesday afternoon. William's surprise for dad 鈥� one of his Lay's potato chips.
William doesn't understand why dad has a needle put into his arm to withdraw blood, nor how many people have been helped by Nik's O-positive gift over 17 years of attending donor clinics, but William likes that the adventure got him chips and juice.
Nik doesn't have a vested interest in donating. He's never needed blood products and isn't aware of any close relatives who have. He doesn't work in the health-care field, in fact he teaches some business courses at University of the Fraser Valley as well as doing money management and fiscal services as his day job.
"It was just something I could do. So I did it," Nik commented.
He came to donating at a time when most young people's thoughts lean more toward dating, homework, or concerts. He started going to blood donor clinics when he was 19. He's now 36.
"My first donation was at the Murrayville Hall," he said. "I'd just gotten off of a summer job, and I heard the ad on the radio to come and donate, so I did. I donated at the Murrayville Hall for many, many years because I lived in the area."
He has no plans to stop donating, but now as a resident of Abbotsford, he's going to start attending the clinic there which is a plasma clinic, collecting a different component of blood. Until now, he's always done whole blood donations.
When he arrived at Willoughby Christian Reformed Church on Tuesday, July 2, to make donation 100, he scanned his QR code and was soon taken into a small interview room for the standard pre-screening questions. Then it was up into a reclining chair to donate, which only takes a few minutes. All 100 donations have been from his right arm. He was unable to donate for one year due to a trip to India, and the occasional cold or other illness has meant postponing donations for days.
Watching nearby for Tuesday's clinic visit was his personal cheering section 鈥� wife Marnie and their children, William and one-year-old Ma毛lle.
Nik has found time to donate in 91原创, Vancouver Island, Vancouver, Surrey, Abbotsford, White Rock, Mission, and Maple Ridge. While it was easier to fit in donations before kids, he's committed to continuing to donate as much as he can.
"In and out in about 45 minutes," he said.
In the past, it was common to find Marnie in the reclining chair next him at clinics, before low iron prevented her from donating, and there was a rivalry as to who could fill the donation bag the fastest.
"When we first started dating, I used to go with him鈥� We used to race," she said with a chuckle. "鈥eah, I did beat him a few times."
His kids are too young to donate and understand the impact of donating blood, but Nik would like his kids to follow in his footsteps and donate when they are old enough.
"[I've donate] just because I could, and I think that's a worthy enough reason, and I think we'd all be better off, too, in Canada if people would also do it, just because."
