Matilda Howard, aka Toots, is spreading the vital message about donating blood and plasma. Photo: Supplied.
In Australia, it is estimated that nearly 60 per cent of the population is eligible to donate blood, yet alarmingly, only 3 per cent of people actually do.
This makes gathering the blood supply needed to care for those needing transfusions extremely difficult.
The search for more donors is an ongoing challenge for Lifeblood and is one of the reasons Matilda Howard, aka Toots, and her parents, Chris and Katie, are asking all who can to roll up their sleeves.
In 2023, Matilda visited the Wagga Base Hospital for what they believed to be a hard-hitting viral infection. This proved not to be the case, and for nearly a year, the Howard family were in and out of the hospital seeking answers for Matilda’s condition.
They found she had a rare disease known as rhabdomyosarcoma, an aggressive cancer that doesn’t allow muscle cells to develop properly. At just nine years old, Matilda went through several intense and rough bouts of chemotherapy in the hope of being one of the 65 per cent of people who survive the disease.
Thankfully, Matilda fought off the disease, but not without the help of the many blood donors who supported her and her recovery.
“We spent a considerable amount of time in Sydney with her while she was undergoing treatment,” Katie said.
“She required a lot of blood products while she was having her treatment. Because of this, a family friend of ours set up Toot’s Blood Angels group in Matilda’s name to try and encourage a lot of family and friends and people within our community to start donating blood, because it’s so important, particularly for cancer patients.
“We’ve had lots of family and friends who had never donated blood before that are now blood donors.
“For a lot of friends that you know may have done it in the past, and hadn’t done it for a long time, it just re-sparked that importance to them of why they needed to donate blood.”
Matilda, who still has a few months of treatment remaining, wanted to thank everyone who donated to her cause and helped on her journey.
“Thank you to everyone who donated,” the young hero said.
“I really like seeing everyone here at Lifeblood donating, it’s really important. It was a really scary experience that I wish no one else would have to go through.”
After last week’s National Blood Donor Week, Wagga Donor Centre relationship manager Mitch Bryce said Lifeblood would continue to call for donations.
“Whatever your reason to donate, Lifeblood is grateful to all donors who give the precious gift of life,” Mr Bryce said.
“While our donors don’t know who their donation helps, we can at least acknowledge their life-giving donation with the perfect wrapping.
”When you see that red bandage, you know you’ve just passed someone who has saved a life.”
You can book a donation by calling 13 14 95 or going online here or on the DonateBlood app.
