One blood donation to the American Red Cross can save up to three lives. That means McNair Law Firm attorney Sidney Boone has saved roughly 144 people with the more than six gallons of blood he’s donated over the past 20 years. “I first gave blood at The Citadel as a way to get out of Saturday morning inspection,” Boone confesses. “But as I learned that South Carolina is a blood-import state, meaning we don’t have enough blood here, I gave more.”
But it’s more than life-saving vital fluid that he gives. For the past seven years, Sid also has hit the streets to approach the business community, faith-based organizations, and individuals living in the Lowcountry to encourage training in first aid, CPR, automated external defibrillator (AED) administration, and drowning prevention, which has translated into instruction for 38,227 locals. “His leadership has helped us provide critical emergency aid for more than 5,300 individuals in our region,” says Lisa Quick, American Red Cross Palmetto SC Region communications specialist.
Surely that kind of commitment would be enough for most people, but not for Boone. When not encouraging Lowcountry residents to learn CPR or working in real-estate law, he serves on the board of directors for Windwood Farm Home for Children. The facility forabused and neglected kids provides trauma-focused cognitive behavioral treatment, group living, education, behavior management, and social skills development to boys ages six to 14. As a founding board chair, Boone has supported the organization for 28 years, hosting fundraisers, lending legal expertise, and being a role model to the young men who live at Windwood. “Sid has been a tremendous asset from a legal standpoint, but he also took a direct interest in the children,” says Windwood founder Jody Tamsberg. “For many years, he’d go out once a month and cook supper for the kids. They loved his spaghetti and looked forward to his visits.”
For Boone, giving back has simply always been a part of his life. “It’s like exercising; I just make that time,” he says. Thanks to Boone’s rigorous service regimen, dozens of children and those needing Red Cross relief have benefited.
ADD IT UP
7 years with American Red Cross
6 gallons of blood donated & 144 lives saved
5,300 people helped through emergency aid
8 boys at 1 house at Windwood Farm Home for Children’s founding in 1985
450 number of children have graduated from Windwood Farm Home For Children’s program
