Join us as we highlight the motivation and experience of two members of our Board of Directors, Ginny and Art Bennert.
What part of the organization speaks to you?
Two parts resonate most strongly with us.
First, we are struck by how difficult it is to ensure our blood supply meets the needs of our community day in and day out and thus how important is to foster our current and future donors. We are amazed by how much effort and education it takes EVERYDAY and we are grateful that the Foundation is dedicated to helping in any way possible.
The second part of the mission that inspires us is the lifesaving capabilities of blood, plasma, and stem cells and the importance of capturing those capabilities through donation and through research. We are especially excited that BioBridge Global now manufactures products which support research and trials in areas like cancer and other difficult diseases.
What do you like to do?
We recently became grandparents, so we love to spend time with our grandson, Brooks! Also, we are big Spurs fans and go to games as often as possible. Ginny likes to play mahjong and garden. Art is recently retired after many years of managing the operations for a plastic injection molding company. He is now working on his golf game and enjoyed playing in the Foundation’s recent golf tournament with his son and friends! We also have a home in Vermont and we enjoy going there in the Summer with our eight-year-old labrador retriever, Emi, to visit family and friends.
What motivates you?
As far as the Foundation is concerned, our main motivation is stewardship; that is, ensuring that the Foundation constantly nurtures and cherishes its donor base. Our donors are the backbone of everything we do and we must take the time to thank them and let them know that without them, we cannot save lives.
Outside of the Foundation, our primary motivation is the health and well-being of our family and friends. People will always have challenges in their daily lives. Making the time, listening effectively, and providing loving support to them has and always will be extremely important to us.
Anything else you’d like to share?
One of our biggest memories was when we played a role in receiving one of our first bus donations. We reached out to Tesoro (now Marathon Petroleum), asking them for a donation for the Red & White Ball. They responded that they didn’t donate to balls, but if we wanted to talk to them further about it to contact them. We did and after they found out more about our mission, they ended up purchasing a bus! We learned the importance of education to our prospective donors and we also learned that it’s ok to think big because our cause is big and important.
Another milestone moment for us was when we were Chairmen of the Foundation during Covid. Besides having to scrap most of our plans for the year and create new ones, we had the privilege of watching how South Texas Blood and Tissue Center navigated the complexities of this unfamiliar and insidious disease and how it rose to meet the needs of the community. They quickly set up plasma donation centers to supply convalescent plasma to hospitals and sick patients prior to the introduction of vaccines. It just reinforced how fortunate we are in San Antonio to have such a capable blood center right here in our hometown.
Read our last Board Member Highlight: Faisal and Mila Khan
