CBS 58

WAUWATOSA, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Experts at Versiti Blood Center say donations slow down in the winter months. Illnesses and busy schedules. keep people out of the donor chairs but not John Wolf.

Wolf is celebrating 496 donations this month. He started donating platelets in 1973. 

"I get the platelets for nothing and if I can help somebody, great. It makes me feel good, too," said Wolf. 

He started with a pilot program in '73. He was one of only five people who matched with aplastic anemia and leukemia patients. He matched with two 6-year-old girls.

He says he's been donating longer than they've kept track, but, as it stands, he's given more then 230 gallons of donations. 

He now has a room named after him at Versiti's Wauwatosa blood center. 

While not everyone can donate every two weeks like Wolf, Nicole Potts, the supervisor of donor services at Versiti, encourages everyone to look into it. January is National Blood Donor Month, and it's also a time when they receive less donations. 

"A major surgery or accident can wipe out our blood supply," said Potts. "People are in need of blood transfusions every two seconds, so it's always needed. Never enough on the shelf." 

You can schedule a time to donate at one of Versiti's blood centers or find a mobile blood drive happening near you.