You can hear the call for blood donations is almost everywhere. They’re at the mall. the gym and even this weekend's Comicon.
But what you may not know is how that blood gets to each and every patient in need in outlying cities like Flagstaff or Globe. In the business of saving lives, there’s no time to wait for traffic.
That’s where Flights for Lives steps in.
Jerry Kapp is the president of FFL and a volunteer pilot. He’s flown 141 missions delivering both blood and platelets. His job is to make sure it gets from United Blood Services’ bank to whoever desperately needs it.
"Flights for life does a very valuable service for us by enabling us to get blood to outlying hospitals very quickly when there is an emergency," said Sue Thew of UBS.
Kapp had some company on his most recent mission to Flagstaff. We flew with him at about 8,5000 feet. It took just an hour to reach the high country from Phoenix.
"I don't know really how to explain it but we do save lives and we do provide a community service so it makes you feel good," said Kapp when he landed.
Kapp never asks where the box is headed. Each time he returns to his snug cockpit starts the plane and proceeds to get home as safely and quickly as possible.
"I’m just providing a service to the community and it helps out,” Kapp admitted.
The United Blood Services’ spokesperson says its short 25-percent of donations because of the holiday weekend. They're offering a number of incentives to new donors, including a lottery entry for a brand new car.
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