LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- One year ago, 12-year-old Kylee Durham was in the middle of a nightmare.
She was sitting on the couch, when a cyst in her jaw suddenly ruptured.
"It was like a faucet pouring out blood," remembers Kylee's mother, Brittany Durham.
Kylee was rushed to Norton Children's Hospital, where she underwent emergency surgery.
"The neurosurgeons ran through all of the possible outcomes. But, at that point, we didn't have a choice, because otherwise she was going to bleed to death," Durham said.
It was a seven-hour procedure, but Kylee survived. During her ordeal, she was given a lot of blood, which came from generous donors she's never met.
"You have 10 pints of blood in your body, and I had to get 8, so I was pretty surprised of how close I was to dying," Kylee said.
Kylee wanted to show her appreciation somehow, so she got her entire class to make "Thank You" cards which are given out to everyone who donates at the Kentucky Blood Center.
But the cards were just part of the giving back. Kylee's parents, who had never donated blood in their lives, decided to change that. For the past year, they've been regular donors at the Kentucky Blood Center in Middletown. The non-profit has served Kentucky for more than 50 years, supplying more than 70 hospitals.
Unlike other centers, all of the blood donated at KBC stays in the commonwealth.
"We need about 400 donors to come in our doors every day," said Martha Osborne, a spokeswoman for the center. "So we're providing a large volume of the blood that is transfused in the state of Kentucky."
Kylee's father, Scott Durham, said he and his wife felt it was time to start donating blood themselves.
"I know there's a ton of excuses not too -- that I'm too busy or I don't like needles, or it's just really inconvenient, I don't have the time," he said. "But there really is a shortage of blood and it really is needed and it really does save people's lives.
"Most people, when you say, 'Well, why did you start donating?' -- it's because someone they knew needed blood. So the more you can tell those stories, the more it hits home with people and the more they'll come out and donate."
Kylee and her parents plan to tell their story for the rest of their lives.
"I've noticed how important blood donors are and how many lives they can save, because they saved mine," Kylee said.
To learn more about donating blood, CLICK HERE.
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