Katie Zerr and Sam Dudley continue to be grateful for the blood donations that helped save the life of their son, Elliott Zerr, after he was born with severe anemia. The couple celebrated Elliott’s first birthday by sponsoring a highly successful Red Cross blood donation drive that resulted in more than 60 people donating blood.
Another blood drive is planned in honor of Elliott’s 2nd birthday, January 25, from 12:30 – 5:30 p.m. at the Eureka Springs Community Center gym. People sign up to donate at redcrossblood.org. You can search by the zip code or the donor code elliottzerr.
Katie was in labor at the hospital when Elliott’s heart rate dropped dangerously low leading to an emergency Caesarean delivery.
“It was super scary,” Katie said. “The energy in the room was definitely nervous. And when Elliott finally came out, he didn’t cry, and I later learned that the nurses were really working hard to get that kid going. Finally, he made his first sound, which was exactly like a cat. The kid was alive. He looked rough, but he was alive.”
The day after he was born, it became apparent that Elliott was critically ill.
“The doctor told us that Elliott was severely anemic, possibly due to an incompatibility between our blood types, and he needed an immediate blood transfusion,” Katie said. “One nurse told me his veins kept popping because he was dehydrated, and she couldn’t get a needle in him. Then the doctor who came into our room earlier with the team of people told me that the nurse would need to go through his belly button. It would take a while…”
The parents were stunned and realized that their baby probably wouldn’t have survived without the goodwill of anonymous blood donors. Sam vowed to be a blood donor for life. Katie told the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) nurses she had never realized how important blood donors were until then.
“Without the donor blood he received, he could have died,” Katie said. “At the very least, he would have developed cerebral palsy. I cry every time I think about standing outside the doors of the NICU, having no idea what was wrong with my baby or if he would be ok, and waiting for a tube of some generous stranger’s blood to empty into his tiny body. It was surreal.”
The first successful blood transfusion was followed by a second transfusion that allowed Elliott to recover and be released to go home. Elliott has grown now to be a healthy, strong two-year-old.
“If you would like to give a donation of blood in honor of Elliott, I would love that and appreciate it from the deepest place in my heart,” Katie said. “I promise you that the recipient of your blood (and that person’s mother) appreciates you more than you could ever imagine.”
If anyone has questions or has trouble signing up, contact Katie at (479) 981-3679.