Shula Gunter’s 25 year journey
Shula Gunter's Story
The journey to hosting a blood donation session at Tonyrefail Community School has been more than 25 years in the making for the driving force behind it, Shula Gunter, a Maths teacher at the school for over three decades.
In 1999, Shula, her husband, and three others were involved in a horrific car accident. Tragically, Shula was the only survivor, needing a staggering 28 units of blood to save her life.
Shula was a blood donor herself before the crash but is no longer able to donate following the transfusions. Instead, she channelled her efforts into helping and encouraging young people to donate blood, first with the Young Farmers’ Club and now at Tonyrefail Community School.
The first donation
“It’s all about encouraging young people to make that first donation,” Shula said. “Once they’ve given for the first time, most people tend to keep going.”
In fact, Shula recalled one of her students, Rachel, who donated for the first time at the of 17, shortly after the accident. Now, Rachel is a colleague of Shula’s at the school and has donated blood nearly 40 times.
The day of the very first donation session at the school was a very proud one for Shula.
“The students have shown great maturity, even those that were nervous about the process,” she says.
“I knew our students would be keen, but I didn’t expect so many to come forward. They were really supportive of each other.”
Shula emphasised the importance of visibility in encouraging first-time donors.
She explained: “We had a lot of Year 12 and GCSE students who wanted to donate but couldn’t because they were under 17 years of age. They were asking when the next session would be because they’re so keen to get involved.
“Some students were too nervous this time around, but being able to see the process, ask questions of the students who did donate, helped their decision for our next session.”
'A really good cause'
Year 13 student Lowri Holloway was the first student at the school to donate blood and was thrilled with the whole process.
“I heard about it from both my parents, who are both blood donors themselves, and they said it’s a really good cause,” Lowri explained.
“I thought making a donation would hurt, but it didn’t. If you’re nervous, ask questions. The staff are very friendly and are happy to answer.
“It was really fun, actually. I definitely recommend it to anyone thinking about it!”
“When we talk about the benefits of blood donation, we always focus on the lifesaving impact a blood donation can have. A single donation has the power to save up to three lives. But there are other benefits, too,” Shula explained.
“We’re a community school, so doing something for the community is especially important for us,” she said.
“Our students left feeling very proud of themselves and what they had done for someone in need.”
A call to other schools
The session at Tonyrefail Community School was arranged as part of the Welsh Blood Service’s sixth-form donation programme, which calls on schools and colleges across Wales to help engage young people in blood donation and also to raise awareness of the importance of signing up as a volunteer to the Service’s stem cell registry.
Shula said: “The Welsh Blood Service staff have been fantastic, on the day and in the run-up to it.
“The visit and presentation before the session did a great job of not just explaining the process to students, but dispelling any myths and answering any questions the students had.”
“I cannot recommend it enough to other schools. It’s a fantastic initiative that benefits the students and has a real lifesaving impact.”
