Nineteen years ago, Tom VanDuyne gave blood for the first time at a small storefront American Red Cross blood drive sponsored by 93.3 WMMR’s Preston & Steve Show. He heard about it on the radio.
“They mentioned the blood drive. Sounds neat. It’s a fun thing and we all love listening to the Preston & Steve Show,” he recalled.
Tom is among a very special group of people who have attended all 19 “I Bleed For Preston & Steve” blood drives, including the most recent one on June 14th at Live! Casino & Hotel in Philadelphia and the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks.
Few blood drives can boast having such a cult following. Familiar faces like Tom flock to the blood drive year after year hoping to grab a selfie with their favorite DJs and lay claim to a coveted, limited-edition Preston & Steve T-shirt.
Even more importantly, they roll up their sleeves in record numbers to be part of something special – a community that literally helps save lives while celebrating the power of rock n’ roll.
Growing from a small storefront drive in the former Franklin Mills Mall in 2005 to one of the largest blood drives in the country with multiple locations and 12 hours of live broadcasts, “I Bleed For Preston & Steve” has collected 21,069 donations since its inception.
During last month’s drive, the Red Cross and Preston & Steve Show celebrated an exciting milestone – the 20,000th donation collected around 10 a.m. at the Oaks location. Katie Mocarsky, who is going into her junior year of college, made the donation.
“It was definitely a surprise!” she said. Katie received Red Cross and WMMR swag and was interviewed live on the radio.
The 2024 drive collected 1,117 units of blood, including 96 first-time donors.
“Each year that we’ve done the blood drive, the percentage of newbies is very high – higher than other blood drives – and I take that as a good sign,” shared co-host Steve Morrison when the show announced the drive’s results during their June 18th broadcast. “If people make that their first time and they realize it’s not that bad, then they tend to become consistent donors.”
“And everyone who came out to donate, you were AMAZING,” added co-host Preston Elliott.
High school special education teacher Matthew Martin was among the first donors through the door at Oaks. He has given blood at the Preston & Steve drive for about seven years.
“It’s so important to save lives. What’s better than that?” he said.
Mitch Powers has donated blood at the drive for the past four or five years. He said, “There’s no reason not to. It takes a couple of minutes out of your time and a lot of people need it out there.”
A loyal fan, Mitch has a tattoo that he won in a Preston and Steve contest.
Chris McAden, who has been donating at the drive for at least seven years, also has a Preston and Steve tattoo. He makes an effort to attend WMMR events and said donating blood is a good way to help people and “feel like a superhero for the day.”
After finishing their show at Oaks, Steve and Preston headed to Live! Casino, where they donated blood. They’re both regular Red Cross blood donors, not only at their drive, but throughout the year in the community.
Live broadcasts add to the excitement of the blood drive. In addition to the Preston & Steve Morning Show, Pierre Robert did his afternoon show from Live! Casino & Hotel between 11 a.m.-3 p.m., then Brent Porche was live from Oaks between 3-7 p.m. Listener-favorite 7 p.m.-midnight DJ Jacky BamBam also spent the morning greeting blood donors in Philadelphia.
For some, bleeding for Preston & Steve is a family affair.
Jaime Kraus and her mother Nicole donated blood together at the drive. Jaime said, “I always like giving blood. It’s an easy way to help people. It’s good karma, like if God forbid anything ever happens, I would want to have the blood I needed.”
Her mom Nicole called donating a “family tradition.” Nicole said, “My dad encouraged me and then I encouraged her. I got my 4-gallon pin just this time last year, and I think my dad is working on his 7-gallon pin. She’s on her way to her first gallon.”
Barbara Steinmetz and her daughter Alison planned to donate blood together during their first time at the Preston & Steve drive. Alison is a rising senior in high school, and like her mother has coveted type O negative blood.
“With the universal blood type and everything, I like the idea of being able to help people even though I’m younger,” Alison said.
Craig Powell is another member of the 19-year club. He’s looking forward to donating at next year’s 20th annual “I Bleed For Preston & Steve” Red Cross blood drive.
“I have had a close friend that battled cancer, and I know that during her treatment she was receiving blood transfusions. I know that I am still helping out others in need,” he said.
During a broadcast after the drive, Preston read a listener text the show received underscoring the importance of blood donations. The text reads, “Guys, thank you, as a parent of a child that needed 5 blood transfusions earlier this year. It is because of people like you and your listeners that he is still alive today. Blood donations are so important. Thank you, thank you!”
“And that’s the reason why it’s all done,” Preston said.
Check out "I Bleed For Preston & Steve" event photos on Flickr.
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PHOTO: American Red Cross Regional Donor Services Executive Helen Munizza and Regional CEO Jennifer Graham pose for a pic with the Preston & Steve Morning show team at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks. Photo by Bernadette Mathis / American Red Cross
- Written by Jenny Farley and Alana Mauger
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