A Hero Among Us: ‘Say Lou Sent You’
Louis Cohan reaches 250 platelet donations, saving lives and inspiring others.
Robyn Spizman Gerson is a New York Times best-selling author of many books, including “When Words Matter Most.” She is also a communications professional and well-known media personality, having appeared often locally on “Atlanta and Company” and nationally on NBC’s “Today” show. For more information go to www.robynspizman.com.
“Say Lou sent you” might sound like a line from a movie. The Lou we are referring to by all standards exceeds superstar status.
Louis Cohan has served as a hero to many individuals of all ages at critical times. When he is not in trial, the Atlanta business litigator donates blood platelets 24 times per year. Cohan’s superpower was recently honored when he reached a monumental milestone of 250 platelet donations at Atlanta Blood Services LLC (ABS) with locations at both Northside Hospital and Cobb County.
Honored at a special ceremony, Cohan’s name was permanently added on a plaque to the life-saving machine. Cohan urges others to consider joining him and said, “Platelets are urgently needed. I have a long and special relationship with ABS and reaching 250 donations for me is deeply personal.”
Since 1998, Atlanta Blood Services has been a vital part of the healthcare community. The gift of being a platelet donor is also time sensitive as platelets only last for five days. Your contribution can have an immediate impact on a patient’s life and the process of apheresis allows you to donate enough platelets for one to three transfusions. Platelets are assigned the important task of clotting blood to stop bleeding and patients who need chemotherapy to treat cancer have a lower number of platelets in their body. This can cause internal bleeding which complicates the patient’s ability to fight cancer and platelet donations are vital for cancer patients to receive their treatments. This process also allows platelet donors to be eligible to donate with ABS every eight days or up to 24 times a year.
Originally from Norfolk, Va., Cohan moved to Atlanta and attended Riverwood High School, University of Georgia and Emory Law School. In 1997, Cohan got a life-changing call and learned that his friend, Jeff Greenblatt, who he knew from Congregation B’nai Torah, needed platelet donations. Cohan said, “Jeff and I worked out together and he was a beast in the gym. One day, he couldn’t finish his workout. Something was wrong. Jeff was later diagnosed with leukemia. The cancer was progressing fast, so time was of essence.”
Cohan added, “Jeff’s daughters — former Atlantans, Beth Rivkind and Lisa Binderow, now grown with kids of their own, shared with me Jeff was fighting leukemia, and it was important to recruit platelet donors who could give their dad a fighting chance.” Cohan added, “To try and help Jeff, I donated a few times. Before Jeff, I didn’t know anything about platelets. Atlanta Blood Services continued to call occasionally. For 10 years or so, I donated a few times a year. At some point, I started to think about how I’ve made 50 donations and what about other people? As I got closer to 100 donations, ABS started an advisory committee, and I started realizing there are not many people doing this and I just kept going.”
Nancy Herring, donor recruitment supervisor at ABS, shared, “Atlanta Blood Services is so proud to honor Louis Cohan, who recently became only the fourth donor in ABS history to reach the incredible milestone of 250 lifetime platelet donations. To commemorate this achievement, a Trima apheresis device (the equipment used to collect platelets) was dedicated in his honor. Louis was inspired by an elite group of dedicated donors: Mr. James Arnett, Mr. Donald Bagley (who has already surpassed 300 lifetime donations) and Mr. Kenneth Lade.”
Herring added, “Just like Louis whose devotion is nonstop, he does not plan to stop there. When Louis reached his 200th donation, he set an ambitious personal goal—not just to reach 250 donations but also to recruit 250 additional donors to join him in saving lives. This campaign, known as ‘Lou Wants You – 250 for 250,’ has helped bring even more awareness and new donors to the cause.”
Cohan added, “’Say Lou Sent You’ is my motto. It’s not about me. It’s about showing others how they can really make a difference to someone’s father, mother, sister, brother or child.”
Nothing is more important to Cohan than his own family. He lovingly said, “Debbie is my sun. Our girls, Aly Mirai, and Emily Ficarrotta, their husbands, and our grandson, Maxie, are but moons reflecting Deb’s light.”
Like his wife, Debbie, Cohan’s mission is to brighten the lives of others and being devoted to educating others. He shared, “One platelet donation can help up to three patients. By becoming a platelet donor, you can directly impact and save lives. While 250 donations is an arbitrary number to me, it’s a milestone that will help me recruit more donors. And ABS feeds me four Oreos every time I donate. Ever wonder what happens if you eat 1,000 Oreos? You save a bunch of lives!”
One of ABS’s founders, Northside Hospital’s Dr. H. Kent Holland, commented regarding Cohan’s accomplishment: “The gifts that donors give of time and platelets makes the curative therapies possible. Donors like Lou give selflessly to save so many lives. I am touched by his commitment.”
Dr. Holland added, “The BMT Program at Northside is the largest allogeneic transplant program in Georgia. Our success is a direct reflection of the combined experience and expertise of the teams in our inpatient and outpatient BMT units, our stem-cell laboratory, and our blood donor center.”
Cohan said, “Through a program called Thank the Donor, I recently received a photo of a patient with his young daughter and his note thanking me for donating. The idea that I might have given that man and his daughter one more hug or one more kiss is overwhelming.”
He added, “I have also challenged myself to recruit 250 donors and not stop there. Please consider donating platelets at Atlanta Blood Services LLC or wherever is convenient for you. Your donation can literally save a life. When asked what happens after donation No. 250, Cohan quoted Buzz Lightyear, “to infinity and beyond.”
You can be part of Cohan’s 250 heroes by reaching out to www.atlantabloodservices.com. Tell them “Lou sent you.”
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