‘To me it’s worth it’: Former Thomasville mayor honored for donating 100 gallons of blood
“I don’t have enough money to give people to do stuff but this is something I can do”
THOMASVILLE, Ga. (WCTV) - At 85 years old, former Thomasville mayor Leonard (Len) Powell officially donated 100 gallons of blood to a OneBlood donor center in Thomasville, per a OneBlood media release.
Born in Thomasville, Powell has spent years of his life dedicated to donating blood to the community. He also served as mayor of Thomasville from 1990 to 1994.
“It’s a lot of people you’ll never even know the story to them but their lives are saved because somebody’s giving blood,” Powell said in an interview.
“I don’t have enough money to give people to do stuff but this is something I can do.”
The former mayor began donating at 16 years old and “mostly giving platelets that go to hospital patients with 5 days,” according to a press release.
Most of the blood donations went to cancer patients and OneBlood wrote that he gave to hundreds of patients throughout his life.
More news out of South Georgia:
The National Institute of Health said even one pint of blood could potentially save three lives.
“To me it’s worth it,” Powell said. “It’s not real pain involved, it’s a little stick in your arm.”
OneBlood said in an interview that the holiday season is the most important time when blood is needed, as people are away and it becomes more difficult to find donors.
“God has been good to me and I thank God on a regular basis with this body he’s presented me with to be able to do that to help other people,” he said.
“I encourage everybody to give it a try, get out and you don’t have to shoot for 100 gallons but just think about I’m laying here for twenty minutes and it’s gone help somebody live.”
Tune in to Eyewitness News at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. for the full story. This article will also be updated this evening with all the details.
To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Nextdoor and X (Twitter).
Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here. Please include the article’s headline in your message.
Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here to get started.
Copyright 2025 WCTV. All rights reserved.
