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The Rural Voice, 2019-02, Page 38 “The group is growing older and we would like to attract the younger generation,” says Hedwig Kreuger who farms with her husband Fred, outside of Londesborough. “I have always gotten a lot out of the speakers. One of the most interesting ones we had was a funeral director. Canadian funeral customs are much different than they are in Holland!” The group avoids political issues and focuses on agriculture subjects, with a mix of fun lifestyle activities. They admit, somewhat shamefaced, that they tend to lapse into the Dutch language when socializing but certainly, everyone spoke English to Stephanie and me at the meeting. Their welcome was genuine. This year’s slate of speakers includes Al Dam from OMAFRA to speak on biosecurity; Paul vanGerwin, a financial planner speaking on long- term disability and critical illness; and Jed Lau, a celebrity chef and teacher at Fanshawe doing a “Simply Cooking” demonstration. Salsa dance lessons, a card-making session and joint meeting with the Oxford Women in Support of Agriculture (featuring international speaker Elaine Froese) rounded up this year’s slate of activities. At this meeting, Stephanie taught the women that Ontario is generally self-sufficient with blood supplies thanks to repeat donors. Canada does not import or export blood but provinces will share with each other as the need arises. Over 800,000 units of whole blood donations are required yearly. There are 36 permanent donation collection sites and 14,000 clinics conducted per year. Blood is collected six days a week. “We never go more than two days without collecting blood and it is often transferred into a patient within five days,” said Stephanie. Most patients do not need whole blood. Burn or shock victims are more likely to need plasma while trauma and surgery patients require red cells. There are eight blood types of which O-negative is the universal blood type which can be given to any patient. Unfortunately, only seven per cent of the population has O- negative blood. Worse yet, O- negative patients can only receive O- negative blood while AB-positive patients can receive any blood type. “We have one patient who required over 200 blood units in one day. Fortunately, he was AB-positive so they threw all they had at him,” shared Stephanie. The most common blood type in Canada is O-positive at 39 per cent. The rarest is AB-negative with only 0.5 per cent of the population carrying this blood type. In between, the percentages are: 36 per cent A- positive; 7.6 per cent B-positive; seven per cent O-negative, six per cent A-negative; 2.5 per cent AB- positive and 1.4 per cent B-negative. “Blood type O is the original blood type and in South America, most people test O. There are more B blood types in the United Kingdom,” said Stephanie. Every minute of every day, someone in Canada needs blood and it takes more than one donor to help one patient. Patients with leukemia can need up to eight donors a week. Sadly, less than four per cent of eligible blood donors sustain the blood system for all Canadians. Close to 40 per cent of all blood donors stop donating for 12 months or more due to a variety of reasons. “About 100,000 new blood donors are needed every year to replace the aging donor base and maintain supply,” stated Stephanie during her presentation. OneMatch is another way people can save a life. OneMatch is the stem cell and marrow network that matches volunteer donors to patients who require stem cell transplants. Volunteers are asked to be under 35 years old and to fill out the online application. Chairperson, Marianne Veldman, was one of the original HPWSA members. She helped get the group started with the help of Canadian dairy farmer Virginia Warwick and Kate Monk, Stewardship, Land and Education Manager with the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority. She said the group encourages women to live to their full potential. “I know when I had to stand up and speak at meetings 15 years ago, I was so nervous,” says Marianne. “Through this group I have gained a lot of confidence in leadership and public speaking.” She is especially excited about this year’s activities saying the executive has been very cohesive this year. “It’s running very smoothly.” New members are welcome to attend the monthly meetings, held mainly in Seaforth. For more information, contact Marita Oudshoorn at 519-955-2953. ◊ February 2019 35 Huron Perth Women in Support of Agriculture chair, Marianne Veldman, says the group has given her confidence to speak publicly. Long-time members, Hedwig Kreuger (left) and Marita Oudshoorn (right) say the group helps them understand agricultural practices in Canada.