It would be tough to tally up the hours Gene Hink has devoted to helping local nonprofit agencies and people in need. But Florida Blood Services has kept a careful count of the blood the Brandon man has donated over the years.

To commemorate a lifetime blood donation total of 75 gallons, Hink was inducted into the Fenwal Blood Technologies' Donation Hall of Fame Oct. 11 at the Kennedy Donation Center in Tampa.

Karen Bergeron, a donor specialist at the center where Hink donates regularly, said he is a champion.

"He has potentially saved hundreds if not thousands of patient lives," Bergeron said.

Hink, a retired Navy diver and maintenance engineer for ExxonMobil Corporation, began donating blood in 1968, in honor of a co-worker's son who was diagnosed with Leukemia.

He has served on the board for the Emergency Care Health Organization and New Horizons Group Homes in Brandon. He also does repair jobs for shut-ins and others who need help, and he pitches in at the Brandon Outreach Clinic, a facility that provides medical services to people in need.

A staff report

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