Donating is in his blood type

Mr Bruning said many people he knew, including his wife, had received blood transfusions and it was this knowledge that drove him to continue.

Once, while overseas in Papua New Guinea, illness had threatened his mother’s life, which doctors saved with the help of blood flown in from Cairns.

‘You only need to look at hospitals and the patients in them to know how much they need these blood products,’ he said.

Mr Bruning began by donating whole blood, but has now moved on to the lengthier business of donating plasma, a process that takes about an hour. |’There are people out there that need it far more than I need my time,’ he said.

‘You get to know the staff, anyhow, and they treat you so well – it becomes a social thing.’

To become a blood donor, call 13 14 95 or visit donateblood.com.au.