A RETIRED teacher from Barry has been awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours List in recognition of his 50 years of blood donations and for his voluntary work in the community.
Howard Provis, 67, has given blood more than 1,000 times, and has become one of the largest blood donors in the UK.
Howard started giving blood shortly after his 18th birthday with the encouragement of his father, Doug, an ambulance driver. Several years later, Howard switched to donating plasma, the light, yellow liquid that makes up approximately 55% of our blood and contains antibodies, known as immunoglobulins, which fight infection.
These antibodies are made into medicines to help people with cancers, rare diseases, immune disorders and genetic conditions, along with aiding burns victims and women experiencing difficult pregnancies.
Howard said: “Things were different when I first started because you could only donate around twice per year, and the basic maths of it were that it would have taken me around 25 years to match my father’s record of 50 donations.
“But the rules changed and because I was young and healthy, I was able to do that around every 12 weeks. You can donate platelets and plasma much more frequently because the red blood cells are returned to you. Over the years, the machines backing up platelet and plasma donation became more efficient and in latter years I’ve donated every three to four weeks very safely.”
“To those who think it hurts, I can honestly say that the Covid jabs that most of us have had were more painful. The Covid injections went into the muscle, but when you donate blood or plasma, the needle goes into the vein just underneath the skin, and you don’t feel very much at all.
“I call it my MOT because when you keep coming back they maintain a close track record of your blood statistics and can spot certain problems.
“The staff there are friends of mine, I’m the veteran and because I’ve been going there so long we talk about one another’s families, how their children are getting on and all kinds of stuff.
“Sometimes, when I go to donate plasma, the moment I arrive the staff will say to me ‘you’re a match today’, and I know what that means, because every day they search blood banks and see who’s coming in to donate plasma.
“When I hear those words, I know it’s going to help somebody that same day. Knowing your plasma will be used to help someone within hours is a truly wonderful feeling that I cannot put into words,” he said.
Alan Prosser, Welsh Blood Service Director paid tribute to Howard’s long track record of donating blood and plasma: “Howard’s commitment to helping others is truly inspirational and his donations will have helped many hundreds of patients in need from hospitals across the whole of Wales over the 50 years he has been donating.
“On behalf of the Welsh Blood Service, I am thrilled to congratulate Howard on this greatly deserved recognition.
“We continue to reach out and to encourage communities across Wales to follow in Howard’s footsteps and to make a lifesaving donation over the winter period. In addition, we are calling on those aged 17-to-30 to help us in the fight against blood cancer and join our bone marrow registry.”
Howard spent many years in the teaching profession, beginning at Llandough Primary School before moving to Lemgo, Germany to work for the British Families Education Service (BFES) where he taught the children of military personnel.
When living in Germany, Howard continued to donate blood and it was transported back to the UK.
After returning to Barry, he taught at several other primary schools throughout south Wales, and in the latter part of his career he was deputy head and acting head at Cwmlai Primary School in Tonyrefail. Following the end of his teaching career, he worked for the Co-Operative Funeralcare in Penarth, Barry and Cardiff.
Sport has played a huge role in Howard’s life since childhood. At school, he excelled at cross country running, and for many years he played rugby before his playing days came to an end when he sustained a cruciate ligament injury while playing for Old Penarthians. He is also a qualified lacrosse coach and an advanced swimming instructor.
Howard’s MBE was partly awarded due to his lifetime of voluntary work for numerous community organisations.
Among Howard’s early volunteering roles were with St John Ambulance, where he was one of the first lifeguards on Barry Island, and he went on to become Officer in Charge of the Penarth Division.
In more recent times, Howard has been a member of the Barry and Vale First Responders, whose members are trained and supported by the Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust.
Today, Howard is an active member of the Barry Rotary Club and the Royal Air Force Association (RAFA) an organisation he became involved with after supporting his son David through the RAF Air Cadets, and he is now the secretary of the Barry branch.
Howard explained what motivates him to become so involved in community volunteering: “I have always struggled to get my head around why people hurt each other, strike up wars and argue to the point where they knife each other.
“Certain events from my childhood have shaped my mindset. I can clearly remember when I was 10 years old watching my father going in his ambulance to help with the rescue following the Aberfan Disaster, and when I was in the Cubs, I realised I could do simple things to help other people and I felt great joy when I did so.
“I’m involved with the Rotary Club now where I’m the treasurer, and I’m passionate about defibrillators, I have one on the side of my own home and I carry a mobile defibrillator in my car,” he said.
Howard has accepted the MBE award with typical modesty: “I sensed something was up because somebody was questioning me very deeply about the things I’d done since I was a kid.
“And when I found out, I felt embarrassed, because I thought there must’ve been others who have done as much as me.
“I couldn’t have done all my voluntary work without the support of my family, especially my sons David and Carwyn, plus the people who volunteer alongside me, and I’m immensely grateful for all that they do,” he said.
Howard is expected to receive his award later in the year as there is currently a backlog due to no ceremonies taking place during the pandemic.
To learn more about donating blood and plasma, and for information about joining the Welsh Bone Marrow Donor Registry, please visit the Welsh Blood Service website: www.welsh-blood.org.uk
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