Teacher Appreciation
Stephen Socolosky
Mayberry School, East Hartford
The Life-Saving Legacy campaign is
an invitation to long time donors and volunteers to pass on their "legacies".
Passing on a legacy is an important way to ensure that your ideas and beliefs will be
carried on. Accepting the legacy of someone you know, is not only receiving a gift from
that person, it’s also giving that person, and many others, a gift in return.
This year, the Life-Saving
Legacy Award went to a truly exceptional teacher who is not only dedicated to helping
others who need blood and blood products, but is also admired by both young and old alike
for the enthusiasm he brings to everything on which he works.
This truly exceptional individual is
Steve Socolosky of East Hartford. Steve began donating blood 19 years ago while working on
second shift. With a mother, two sisters and a wife (with Steve in picture at left) who are RNs, he knew of the
daily need for blood and just thought that he would "try" it. He was surprised
to find out that after he donated, he actually felt good. "I felt that I had done
something that was really worthwhile. "And what kept me coming back was that I kept meeting new
people who are so nice." As of
today, he has donated over 10 gallons of blood that has helped to save numerous lives.
But what makes him truly exceptional is the fact that he is passing
on his legacy to his sixth grade students at Mayberry School in East Hartford. When it
came time to educate his students about the circulatory system, he thought about visiting
the Red Cross. "I
want them to have a real world connection -- I don’t want them to just look at a
book." So in December, he brought
in 65 sixth grade students in for a tour. But it didn’t stop there!
Because of his enthusiasm, the school decided to sponsor a blood
drive and dedicate it in memory of a fifth grade student who lost the battle to leukemia
in the fall. His students wrote a play and designed props. The week before the drive, they
presented it to the younger students to educate them about the importance of donating
blood.
Despite the bad weather that day, many came out to donate. But what
is most important is that he,
himself, donated blood in front of all his students. He is an example of a
true legacy. Not only is he a great supporter of the blood program today,
but he is also contributing to the blood program tomorrow by passing down
his legacy to every child he knows.
For more information about our education program, or
visiting the American Red Cross Blood Center in Farmington, please contact Carol O'Hala at
(860) 678-5483 or e-mail at ohalac@usa.redcross.org.
To Schedule An Appointment To
Donate Blood,
Please Call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (448-3543).
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