A national tragedy inspires a lifelong mission of giving
By Dan Dowling – regional communications manager “I'm grateful that my health has permitted me to donate as long as I have. It has been an easy way for me to contribute to help. I feel good about being able to do this.” Gary Schilmoeller’s first step into blood donation came after the tragic events of September 11th, 2001. Both he and his wife, Kathy, responded to a call to donate and found themselves side by side on donation beds at the blood drive. “It just so happened that they called both of us up at the same time, and we were beside each other as we donated,” Gary recalls. A local news station was there at the blood drive to cover the event and featured Gary and his wife for the news story. The experience sparked a lifelong commitment to donating blood. “They made a big deal about it on the news, and that was what got me started on giving blood. I've been doing that ever since,” he says. Having moved to Maine in 1980 to teach at the U...
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