Partners for Life champion, Luce Lepage, is committed to encouraging plasma donation in her community.

When it’s cold out, you often want to stay cozy at home, but it's critical that donors continue to give lifesaving plasma throughout the winter months. For Partners for Life champion extraordinaire, Luce Lepage in Sudbury, Ont., committing to a plasma donation routine can have a major impact on patients, their loved ones, and beyond.  

Luce Lepage has been a donor for 15 years, but her dedication to strengthening Canada’s Lifeline doesn’t end there. As an experiential learning consultant, Luce has the unique opportunity to educate the next generation of donors — high school students — on the importance of blood and plasma donation. She also engages staff and colleagues in her school district to join her at the Sudbury plasma donor centre in becoming donors and participating in recruitment activities.

Luce is the Partners for Life champion responsible for four plasma donation teams. The teams are made up of three schools in the Conseil scolaire public du Grand Nord de l'Ontario (CSPGNO) and a team of donors from the school board itself.

These dedicated students, educators and staff don’t just make a difference, they make all the difference for patients. Their plasma donations, awareness campaigns and recruitment efforts are helping to save lives across Canada. These proud francophone Partners for Life teams have made more than 350 donations in 2022 and they schedule monthly group donations throughout the year.

Luce Lepage shares what drives her to make an impact.

“As co-founder of the CSPGNO charitable foundation, OUICare, one of our missions is to get students involved in their community. There’s no better way to do that than by doing it yourself as well — you have to ‘walk the talk,’” shares Luce. “We give some of our precious time in order to save someone’s life. Staff members have told me that they were nervous about donating since they’d never done it before, so it was more motivating to go as a group.”

Plasma is the protein-rich liquid in blood that helps other blood components circulate throughout the body. Plasma donated in Sudbury and at our other dedicated plasma donor centres across the country goes to manufacturers that make lifesaving medications from plasma. These medications are used to treat patients in Canada with immunodeficiency, neurological conditions, shock and severe burns, among other medical conditions. For many patients, there is no other treatment option.

Luce sees the impact of the pandemic on blood and plasma donation. “Other people had stopped donating during the pandemic,” she notes. “They told me that these campaigns were what got them back into donating and now they donate once or twice a month.”

Seeing the students discover a powerful way to help others is exciting for Luce. “I also love to see how proud students are to be able to do this,” says Luce. “Many students have given me their birthdates in order to remind me to go see them when they turn 17 and are eligible to donate plasma. Hopefully, by starting at a young age, they’ll develop the habit of donating and work it into their lives.”

Is your organization interested in joining our Partners for Life program? Donate as a group and build meaningful connections with your colleagues while saving lives. Plasma donors can donate more frequently than whole blood donors. Plasma donors are encouraged to create a monthly donation routine to make an impact on even more lives.

This winter, leave hibernation behind and try a plasma donation! Book a donation individually or with your team today. Learn more at blood.ca/plasma. For more information on our Partners for Life program, please contact: pfl@blood.ca.

Medications made from plasma are in demand for a growing number of conditions. Thank you to our dedicated donors and partners. Without your support, we would not be able to meet the needs of patients in Canada. Donors like you make all the difference!