The Rotary Balita no. 666 (March 1, 1951).

Coinciding with the launching day of the annual Philippine Red Cross fund campaign, Hilario Lara, director of the Institute of Hygiene, advocated strongly the establishment in Manila of a blood dehydration plant in his talk at the regular luncheon meeting of Manila Rotary where he was guest speaker. The Philippines needs badly a dehydration plant to process blood plasma for storage, Dr. Lara said as he pointed out the importance of a bill pending in Congress which seeks to appropriate P700,000 to equip and operate a dehydration plant during the first year of its establishment. The approval of this bill is imperative, especially so now that blood plasma has become hard to get from the United States in view of military demands and the threat of atomic warfare is increasing. He urged for more blood donors and at the same time praised the Red Cross for its great humanitarian work particularly in the operation of a blood bank. In pleading for more blood donations, Dr. Lara quoted Emerson: "Rings of jewels are not gifts but apologies for gifts. The only gift is a portion of yourself." To this he added his own, "The ideal gift, if one can afford it, is one's own blood." In advocating the establishment of a dehydration plant, the doctor emphasized that dried blood has certain advantages over whole blood. The former does not need. refrigeration nor typing or cross-matching. It is easier to transfuse, he added, and in serving the people in remote barrios it certainly offers great advantages. ----- There's only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that's your own self. So you have to begin there, not outside, not on other people. That comes afterwards, when you've worked on your own corners. -Aldous Huxley.