Exclusive Story by WeirdKaya - Proper accreditation to WeirdKaya and consent from the interviewee are required.
On the outside, Vince Hoor appears to many as a humble, softspoken teacher who has been tutoring and examining thousands of students in A-level Chemistry for over 11 years.
But what most people may not know is that Vince is also a regular blood donor who became an online inspiration, or sensation if you will, with a Threads post reminding Malaysians that one’s race, religion, and skin colour knows no distinction in times of need.
From hesitation to consistent donation
For first-timers, blood donation can seem to be an incredibly scary and painful experience, especially for those who can’t stomach the sight of a needle being inserted into a vein and blood flowing right out of it.
In Vince’s case, it wasn’t the fear of needles that made him hesitant to donate blood, but a misconception regarding his blood type.
“My reluctance to donate blood was rooted in my lack of understanding regarding my blood type, which is AB+ and considered to be incredibly rare.
“Back then, I was told that my blood type wasn’t suitable for most people, especially for the red blood cells. But later, I found out the AB+ blood type is equally as helpful as any other blood type and a universal donor for plasma,” he explained.
Armed with this newfound information regarding his blood type, Vince made his first ever blood donation while he was a research assistant at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman’s (UTAR) Kampar campus in 2013.
From that point on, Vince continued to donate on a regular basis and today, he has made close to 30 blood donations and has no plans to stop anytime soon.
When asked what turned him from a hesitant donor into a regular one, Vince said he had come to see blood donation as a win for everyone involved.
“Thanks to the fact that my red blood cell count is way higher than the average, it gives me the incentive to donate often. Not only can I help to save lives, but I enjoy several health benefits too, such as lower blood pressure levels and better heart health.”
The post that made him famous
For 13 years, Vince donated blood on a regular basis and even made an effort to donate more often during the Covid-19 pandemic to help patients who needed blood transfusions but couldn’t move in and out of the hospital freely.
However, what he did not expect was a call from a medical officer working at the hospital he donated blood at to reveal a surprising piece of news.
“In the past, Hospital Seberang Jaya would call me from time to time regarding my blood donation. But what made this call different was the revelation that my blood was a match with a Malay boy suffering from thalassemia.”
Following the revelation, Vince went on to pen a Threads post that has since racked up over 60,000 likes.
One of the post’s most enduring sentences reads as such:
My blood doesn’t differentiate between Malays, Chinese, or Indians. All it’s needed for is to save lives. We always help out when we need to. I’m a Malaysian.”
View on Threads
When asked for his thoughts regarding the post and its subsequent virality, Vince stressed that it was merely meant to be a typical posting with no expectations of garnering widespread attention.
“I was actually buying economy rice when I wrote the post,” he laughed. “By the time I finished teaching classes that day, I was shocked to see that there were already 10,000 likes.”
Vince also opined that it was the racial angle that probably attracted so much attention from Malaysians as most, if not all, topics are often viewed through racially-tinged lenses. But he was careful to point out that it wasn’t the post’s main intention.
“I saw it more as a way of promoting blood donation to the public as I wanted to encourage more to do the same.
“Previously, I was told by doctors that blood donation rates as a whole is quite abysmal, where it barely hits 5% a day and gets even worse during the Ramadan period as fasting Muslims can’t donate blood.”
Resistance & ignorance
As a veteran blood donator, Vince has observed that the decision to donate blood is still very much dictated by racial lines, particularly among the Chinese community.
“From what I’ve seen on social media, a majority of positive comments regarding blood donation come from Malays, whereas the Chinese would be questioning whether the blood is ‘halal’ or not. It’s sad but expected.
“Another thing about the Chinese community is that they often expect some kind of reward after donating blood. But what most aren’t aware of is that if you do so at private hospitals, they actually do give out food and shopping vouchers.”
While Vince credits hospitals for stepping up efforts in increasing public awareness, he said it’s still not effective in reaching the masses.
“Perhaps one way they can do is to explain the basics and benefits of blood donation in an informative and engaging manner that can be easily understood by all, especially the younger generation who tend to have shorter attention spans.”
Continuing the cycle
Vince, who’s a father to a young daughter, said he looks forward to the day he’s able to encourage her to follow his footsteps once she’s of age and when her health allows her to donate blood regularly.
He also called upon Malaysians who are in the pink of health to take the first step in contributing to the nation’s blood bank.
Each time you donate blood, you’re not just helping others, but you’re also benefitting yourself health wise, so it’s a win-win situation for everyone.
“If you’re a first-timer who’s daunted by the prospect of having a needle pricked into your arm, bring a friend along and make them donate alongside you too.”
Exclusive Story by WeirdKaya – If you wish to reproduce this story, please ensure that you obtain consent from the interviewee to maintain factual accuracy and avoid the potential spread of misleading information.
If referencing or using any information from our story, we kindly ask that proper credit is given, along with a backlink to WeirdKaya, as acknowledgment of the efforts made by our editors in sourcing and conducting interviews.
