Giving Back: Northville Mom Organizes Blood Drives, Which Helped Save Son's Life

It was the small changes in her son that Northville parent noticed first – he was running more slowly, he was getting tired more easily, he was getting fevers. The then- School fifth grader just wasn’t himself.

After going to the doctor’s office in 2007, when his symptoms began, she learned that her son Christoph Bartshcat had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. So began the long process of hospital stays, chemotherapy, blood transfusions and a number of other medical procedures.

Just re-telling the story makes her voice shaky and her eyes fill with tears. But it’s one she's eager to tell if it will get more people to donate blood, which she credits with helping save Christoph’s life.

Organizing blood drives

Bartshcat organizes blood drives at various Northville Public Schools, holds other fund raisers and even began a non-profit to help raise dollars for children’s oncology research.

“He kept needing to get blood,” she said. “It was not a one-time thing.”

Bartschat has a long string of beads, each bead representing a different procedure Christoph had to have, including blood transfusions. The string of beads is so long that it takes up half a table. Bartschat said it wasn’t too long after the process began that she and Christoph started organizing blood drives in Northville with the American Red Cross. In fact, she remembers the exact day.

“It was one of those days, he had a transfusion at the clinic and he was sitting in the transfusion room where there were other children getting their transfusions,” she said. “When we were driving past Busch’s they had a truck, the Red Cross had a blood drive truck. And I said ‘Christoph, they’re having a blood drive.’ And probably that’s when it really struck me – this is where the blood is coming from.”

Bartschat added, “I never knew who needed all this blood. I never knew there were so many kids who just dependent on this blood.”

So they stopped the car and went up to the truck.

“I just wanted to say thank you to the nurses who were working it, to the donors. And Christoph went on board and he said ‘Thank you. I just got a blood transfusion.’ And the people who were laying there, their eyes opened up," Bartschat said.

Since then, the family has begun organizing regular blood drives in Northville. The will be held at , where Christoph is now a student, tomorrow from 1-7 p.m.

Fund-raising for a cure

It was part of Christoph's nature to be inquisitive, she said, recalling a time in his childhood when it took an answer at the chemical reaction level to satisfy his question about how bees make honey. And knowing more about the disease that had suddenly afflicted him was no exception.

"I thought this was going to be another 'how do bees make honey' kind of question," she said.

In some ways, it was.

"Christoph's only question, after 'Will I lose my hair,' was 'What causes leukemia?' And he kept asking."

After doing her own research to answer her son's question, Bartschat soon discovered that a reply would not be so easy to find.

"They don't know what causes leukemia," she said.

It was then that they began looking for a research group for which to fund raise. They found the Leukemia and Lymphoma society. In their first year, the Bartschats raised about $27,000 for the society's walk. That sparked the idea for a benefit, which included things like an auction, raffle and a blood drive sign-up.

"We decided maybe we should form our own non-profit organization so we could raise money and give it directly to the doctors doing the research," she said.

And their non-profit, Christoph's A.L.L. Stars followed soon after.

Community support

Today, Christoph is "doing great," his mother said. It has been a year since he stopped treatment and there is no sign of illness. The family puts on about four blood drives a year.

When his symptoms first began, there was quite a network of support, which included many friends and neighbors.

A neighbor began baby-sitting Bartschat's three other children. Others helped organize and volunteer at the blood drives. Still others helped with fund-raising.

Even on the school district level, Bartschat found support, as Christoph moved on to , where the family also began organizing blood drives.

"She’s very good at organizing projects," said Meads Mill principal Sue Meyer. "She's excellent in educating people with the Red Cross. She's very intelligent and patient."

One of the things Meyer said she noticed immediately was that Bartschat focuses her energy not only on her family but others as well.

Her efforts are "outward centered. It’s not about her," Meyer said. "I think she’s just a real asset to the Northville community."

Part of the importance of hosting blood drives within the school district is getting the kids involved, Meyer said. They find donors to help sign up. That's why she was eager to help Bartschat hold them at Meads Mill.

"It gets them involved outside of themselves," Meyer said. "The kids are excited about the blood drive. They see that they’re part of that community."

To sign up for the American Red Cross blood drive at Northville High School tomorrow or to find other blood drives in the area, visit redcrossblood.org. Another blood drive is on Oct. 13 at the Northville Hills Golf Club subdivision.