Longtime friends become Mayo Clinic's first-ever 400-time blood donors
Friends Dave Johnson and Mark Korinek have hit a remarkable milestone in becoming the first-ever Mayo Clinic blood donors to reach the 400 club. Their volunteer efforts are credited to helping upwards of 2,400 lives.
So, how did they do it? The pair began donating when they were teenagers.
Johnson’s father was a regular donor with the Red Cross and occasionally tagged along with him throughout high school, also wanting to help. The sporadic donations turned routine once Johnson began working at IBM, where there was a room staffed with Mayo employees so workers could donate blood on-site.
Korinek’s first donation was slightly less virtuous.
Upon learning that participating in his high school’s blood drive meant no strenuous activity for the rest of the day, Korinek rounded up his entire basketball team — scheming to get out of practice.
“I got the entire team to donate blood and we showed up to practice with our bandages and figured we could get out of it — but that was not the case,” said Korinek. “I think he ran us harder than ever.”
Years later, Johnson and Korinek met at their children’s homeschooling classes. Connecting about their shared passion for running, Johnson and Korinek began training for marathons together — successfully completing the 50-mile Zumbro Endurance run, and many more.
Always talkative during their runs, they eventually found out they shared another common interest.
“As we're chatting on the run, blood donations came up and we found out that we were both what I would call avid donors, and weirdly, we were right in the same range of donations,” said Johnson.
The duo then began their friendly competition for who could donate the most, with Clinic staffers teasing “Dave is in the lead right now….” or “Mark pulled ahead....” Earlier this spring, Johnson and Korinek set the Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Program record of donating blood 400-plus times.
Johnson’s last donations before the 400 marker were especially meaningful to him.
Prior to donating, the donor’s blood is tested to ensure health and check for close antibody matches to patients in need to decrease rejection issues as much as possible. Johnson was part of a very small number of donors that matched with a cancer patient and his last five donations went directly to them.
“It just underscored that this is really helping people in need, and showed that more donors are needed and this directly benefits people,” said Johnson.
Mayo Clinic Blood Donor Service’s said that whole blood inventory has been increasingly difficult to sustain during the pandemic, and they are always looking for new donors since existing ones either move or eventually can’t donate due to health reasons.
Donors can choose the length and frequency of their donation. Whole blood donations can occur up to 8 times per year, while the platelet donations Johnson and Korinek give can happen up to 24 times per year. Plasma donors can donate about once a month.
Donors also receive free mini-physicals and hemoglobin testing to ensure their health prior — both a benefit and motivating factor to stay healthy for Johnson and Korinek.
“Staying healthy to help other people get healthy is incredibly rewarding,” said Korinek. “To know of the 2,400 lives we have saved is an overwhelming feeling — being able to give back just by simply laying down and getting cookies.”
Mayo Clinic has two permanent donor sites at the Hilton Building and Saint Marys Campus. Call 507-284-4475 to schedule your appointment.
Haley Handelman is a summer news intern for Med City Beat. A graduate of Mayo High School, she now studies at Northwestern University.
