Blood-sucking vampires

It is Twilight as I'm typing to complain about the American Red Cross. With the number of phone calls I have received lately, you would think the Red Cross was running for a vacant Senate seat. I hung up on the caller for the second time in three days.

I gave blood for the first time a few months ago. I had been meaning to do it for years, but like so many things, just never got around to it. Finally, in February, at the senior center up the street, I did and I felt good about it, even if the tech was a little freaky.

She was a little too excited to see my "lovely, luscious vein." She was pretty and perky and the way her eyes got all big as she inserted the needle making me feel like a supporting character in a Charlaine Harris novel. The time it took me to fill the pint bag came in at the low end of the average ... for men. Being competitive in anything and everything, I do boast about that a little.

A few weeks after I gave blood, I got my donor card and promptly tucked it in my wallet. I checked online for another local blood drive in April when I was eligible, but none were convenient. I got a flyer in the mail, listing upcoming drives. A few days later, I also got a phone call from an eager young man who was giving me the same information that was in the mailer.

It is now the end of the first week of May. I got the May flyer last week, and noticed the Red Cross will be back at my senior center in a couple of weeks, so that's on my calendar. On Wednesday, the Red Cross called. I said thanks, I got the flyer and hung up.

Tonight, the Red Cross called again. I said, sorry, wrong number and hung up. Again.

I understand that the need for blood is critical. When there's a disaster along the lines of 9/11 or Hurricane Katrina, donations soar. But blood has a short shelf life. If it's not used in a certain amount of time, it has to be thrown out. The Red Cross needs more donors and needs them to donate consistently.

However, the repeated phone calls, on top of the mailings, are not the way to get me to donate again. It makes the American Red Cross seem like blood-sucking vampires.

It also makes me question how the nonprofit is spending the monetary donations it receives. According to the Better Business Bureau, 90 percent of donations go to targets; 4 percent to fund-raising and 6 percent to administrative costs. I hope so, but between the amount of mail I'm receiving and the number of phone calls I'm getting, that seems hard to believe.

And the Red Cross isn't that much different from the other charities I choose to support. Many have figured out that email is more cost-effective, but many still choose to mail or call, often for additional donations. Here's a news flash for them: I have given as much as I can. Try eliminating the mailings and paying for the staff who is calling me and see how much farther my donation goes toward supporting your programs.

Think about it: You try to do the right thing, then regularly have someone calling you to tell you it wasn't enough. It makes me tired. And it makes me want to find some other way to give.

With the Red Cross, my donation isn't monetary, but the principle is the same. Maybe I should go out and find a vampire to whom I can offer my blood directly. At least, I would know for sure that my donation is going to save a life. And I wouldn't get nearly as many phone calls.