Sara Zeledon Hernandez is an 8 year old girl in our Child Sponsorship program who was diagnosed with aplastic anemia 13 months ago. Aplastic anemia is a condition where the bone marrow doesn’t produce enough blood cells – WBCs, RBCs, and platelets. Every 8 days, she gets her blood counts checked and receives a blood transfusion if the numbers are below normal. 5 Manna program directors and 1 community member, Karen Bustos, donated blood at the Nicaraguan Red Cross in Sara’s name to ensure she receives the blood she needs!
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| Sara |
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| Donating blood in Nicaragua was exactly the same as in the US. I learned that Nicaragua has one of the greatest donor rates in the entire world! |
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| 500cc later... I've ensured Sara will receive blood :) |
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| Katie and Matt finishing up and about to relax with some pear juice. |
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| Amanda mid-stick. |
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| When Karen learned she was a universal donor, she got extremely excited and asked how often she was able to donate. The sense of community and desire to help others in this country is amazing. |