Record Turnout For Blood Drive Memorializing Girl, 6

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL — The local family of a girl who lost her battle with leukemia at age 6 was ecstatic to see a record turnout for the 14th annual Emily Holum Memorial Blood Drive on Sunday. Robin Holum, Emily's mother, told the Daily Herald 121 donors stopped out to the event, which ran from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Our Lady of the Wayside Church, 435 E. Ridge Road in Arlington Heights.

The event is a way for Emily's family to give back to those who donated blood and helped prolong his daughter's life by two years, Tom Holum, Emily's father, told the Daily Herald. Emily, who would've turned 19 this Valentine's Day, died of acute myeloid leukemia on Aug. 2, 2007, at age 6, according to the blood drive's Facebook page.

“We never get tired talking about Emmy,” according to a statement from Robin Holum, which was posted on the event's Facebook page. “For all of the times she needed a blood transfusion or platelets, it was always there for her. The blood drive is a way for the memory of Emmy to shine bright and for her spirit to continue to help others.”

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