Image: Canadian Blood Services / Abbotsford resident Nikolas Venema completed an extraordinary milestone earlier this month when he completed his 100th blood donation on July 2. Venema heard an ad for Canadian Blood Services around 2007 and never looked back, giving blood continuously for about the past 17 years. 

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Abbotsford blood donor

Abbotsford man selflessly reaches the century mark as prolific Fraser Valley blood donor

Jul 11, 2024 | 1:46 PM

ABBOTSFORD — All it took for Abbotsford resident Nikolas Venema to start giving blood as a young adult was a simple advertisement he heard one day from Canadian Blood Services.

And when life got busy for Venema as he pursued an undergraduate degree, got married to his wife Marnie, and became a dad to his kids William and Maelle, he never wavered in his commitment to saving lives through the gift of donating blood.

“I moved back to Canada in the summer of 2005 as an 18-year-old and began donating two years later in May of 2007 as an (almost) 20-year-old,” Venema said. “I’ve been donating whole blood almost every 56 days since then with the exception of a deferral for traveling.”

That commitment reached a memorable milestone on July 2, 2024 when Venema donated his 100th unit of whole blood in Langley, equaling 13 gallons.

“That’s roughly nine times my entire blood volume,” he said. “I don’t have a story regarding how I began donating. I just started. I heard an ad and I went. All it took was one time and it became part of my 8-week routine. I hope that everyone is inspired to give, but I particularly hope a young person sees me reaching 100 units of whole blood by age 36 and is inspired to beat my record. I think it’s possible by 33 years old if you began right at 17.”

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Between work and school, Venema has donated all across the Lower Mainland, even once on Vancouver Island, and gotten to know what he says are the kind people at CBS who are involved in the donation process.

“As I complete my 100th whole blood donation, my plan is to begin donating plasma on a regular schedule here in Abbotsford,” Venema said. “I hope that if my kids are able to donate that one day, they’ll join me. It’s important work for us all to roll up our sleeves and help our neighbours. You don’t need a story. You just need to start. Others in need is reason enough for me. When there is a need, I believe you should answer the call.”