Waterlooville grandfather who has given 100 pints of blood over the years urges others to donate

A FORMER policeman who is ‘proud’ to have donated 100 pints of blood over a span of six decades is urging others to do the same to help save lives.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Grandfather-of-four Keith Chadwick was just 22 when he was signed up to give blood for the first time by his boss – in what was then Portsmouth City Police – in 1967.

Unsure what to expect he attended a clinic at St Cuthbert’s Church in Copnor, where he found the process to be ‘easy.’

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

‘Our sergeant at the time just decided we were going to give blood,’ the 77-year-old said.

Keith Chadwick from Waterlooville as a police officer in the 1960s. Picture: Keith ChadwickKeith Chadwick from Waterlooville as a police officer in the 1960s. Picture: Keith Chadwick
Keith Chadwick from Waterlooville as a police officer in the 1960s. Picture: Keith Chadwick
Read More
Coronavirus in Portsmouth: 30 volunteers aged 16 needed in city for latest 'vita...

‘The process was a bit different then, you could only donate about twice a year and once you hit 60 they wouldn’t let you do it any more.

‘You were put on a bed while they took the blood and afterwards they used about a metre of bandage to wrap around your arm. Now you can do it sitting down and just with a couple of plasters after.

‘But the main thing was you knew you were going to be helping someone who really needed it. Now I get a message to say which hospital my blood has gone to which I think is amazing.’

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

It was all the more meaningful for Keith as his brother Roger was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma at the age of 21.

He said: ‘My brother had about 21 blood transfusions throughout his life. Because of them he survived a lot longer than anyone thought he would and he reached the age of 72.’

Just a few years ago it was also discovered that Keith actually had a rare blood type. Initially he was recorded as having O positive blood, but in 2016 a subgroup of O positive was found – called RO. It is thought only two per cent of blood donors have RO blood and so Keith’s donations became even more valuable.

He said: ‘They need RO blood to treat people with sickle cell anaemia, who require a lot of transfusions.’

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Keith, who lives in Waterlooville with his wife Shirley, made his 100th donation in October this year.

‘If anyone is thinking about donating blood for the first time I’d tell them to just do it,’ he added.

‘You could be saving someone’s life.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

You can subscribe here for unlimited access to our online coverage, including Pompey, for 26p a day.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.