His best friend's daughter had a tough diagnosis. He stepped right up − and hasn't stopped

MARSHFIELD − Ralph "Rocco" Russo, 77, has plenty to be proud of, but instead of talking about himself, his main message is about "a dire need" for donated blood platelets.

This is one of the times of year when the call goes out that blood and platelet supplies are critically low. New donors are needed and the Kraft Family Donation Center at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women's Hospital is holding Russo up as an example of how much one individual can do, selflessly, and why.

Dana-Farber estimates that Russo’s platelet donations, which he makes twice a month, have amounted to 69 gallons of blood products and contributed to saving 550 lives.

Russo recently made his 550th platelet donation at the Kraft Family Donation Center. Over 27 years, he has shown up in Boston usually twice a month and sat for up to two hours while the platelets are removed from his blood.

He does this to help heal and save the lives of patients across New England. The only breaks he took were after he had hip surgery and three knee replacement surgeries. Snowstorms didn't stop him; neither did COVID.

"I was very frightened," his wife, Annemarie, said about the pandemic. She told him, "You could die" if he kept going into the hospital while the virus was so active. He replied, "If I don't give platelets, other people will die."

"I'm glad I'm here and I can do it," Russo said this week, two days after his first monthly donation Jan. 13. "I am happy I can help people."

"A lot of people are not aware that platelet donation truly saves lives," Annemarie said. After the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, donors were told that their platelets had been used to help treat the victims.

When he was working, Russo would go alone to donate platelets on his way to his job. Now that he is retired, his wife accompanies him on his drive into Boston and waits with him.

His mission began in 1997 when he was working for Boston Gas Co. and a co-worker, Lenny Sorenson, who was a good friend, received an emergency call on the job. Sorenson's 14-year-old daughter Nicole Sorenson had been diagnosed with cancer and needed a bone marrow transplant.

"I drove him back to the office to get his car and I felt so helpless, I wanted to do something," Russo said. Two other co-workers, Steve Taylor and Wayne Davis, mentioned that others had donated blood to help friends needing surgery or treatments.

Russo made his first donation right away. Nicole Sorensen, a graduate of Braintree High School in 2000, did well for many years, and he met her in 2011, when he was honored for his 300th platelet donation.Nicole died on May 17, 2021, one day after her 39th birthday. Her cancer had recurred, and Russo had visited her in the hospital. A chef, she was studying to become a nurse.

Platelets allow blood to clot and wounds to heal.

"Cancer patients and other critically ill patients often require transfusions of healthy platelets because their blood does not clot properly," Dana-Farber explained in a news release.

Donating his platelets is like going to 'my second home'

Once donated, platelets have a shelf life of just five days.

“That’s why the need for donors is constant – and why donations on a magnitude like Rocco’s are so significant," Dr. Sean Stowell,medical director of the Kraft Family Blood Donor Center and Apheresis at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, stated.

As Russo relaxed at home this week, he said, “I’ve been going to the Kraft Center for a third of my life, so it’s my second home. Everyone is so nice, and the donation process doesn’t hurt. It's easy and it saves lives. Think of what the recipients (the cancer patients) are going through."

Both he and his wife have been inspired by the annual brunches for donors the Kraft Center holds at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro. More than 700 donors have attended. At one brunch, he met a man whose bone marrow cancer went into remission following treatments that included an infusion of Russo's Type O positive blood, which is critical in trauma care.

Russo's daughter Elizabeth was 7 when he started the donations and she grew up witnessing his sense of service and his gratitude for being able to help. A registered dietitian, she became a volunteer at the Marshfield Food Pantry and also served on the board.

"She had quite an example (in Rocco) for her inspiration," Annmarie said.

“Rocco’s selfless dedication to helping others has always been deeply admired and appreciated,” said Molly McDermott, recruitment program manager at the Kraft Family Blood Donor Center. “His commitment – and that of all our donors – is especially important now to ensure that our patients may continue receiving essential medical care.”

Donors can make an appointment to give blood or platelets at the Kraft Family Blood Donor Center (open Tuesday through Sunday) by calling 617-632-3206 or emailing BloodDonor@partners.org. Walk-ins are welcome at the center, which is at 35 Binney St. in Boston.

Reach Sue Scheible at sscheible@patriotledger.com.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Marshfield's Rocco Russo has donated blood platelets for 27 years