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Ossining Family Gives the Gift of Life

SOMERS, N.Y. - Anthony Torchia played two years as wide receiver on the Kennedy High School football team, but this season he served as assistant coach. “I’ll definitely play again,” he said. “I’m already working out.”

Anthony’s hiatus began last June, when he decided to take his all-terrain vehicle for a test drive while his parents and sister were getting ready for their annual extended family barbecue. Minutes later his sister, Daniella, heard a crash and a scream. As she rushed into action a neighbor who used to run the Trauma Center at Westchester Medical Center, came to help.

Within a few hours, though it seemed like an eternity, Anthony was in intensive care, suffering from four skull fractures, four broken ribs, a fractured pelvis and a shattered spleen. A month of hospitalization, treatment and four pints of donated blood put him on the road to recovery. 

In gratitude, the Torchia family, who live in Ossining, planned another barbecue in August to celebrate Anthony’s homecoming. The New York Blood Center provided busloads of cots and medical apparatus and guests were given the chance to donate blood in Anthony’s honor. Fifty-two pints were collected.

He is thankful for the blood he received during his crisis. “I would never want to put somebody else in that position because I know how it feels.” When the Torchias learned that current supplies at the Blood Center were running low, probably due to the general pressures of the holiday season, the family immediately pitched in. 

“Anthony’s accident really opened our eyes to all these people out there who need this to survive,” said Daniella. So she reached out to Facebook groups, put up posters and spread the word. 

The Blood Drive will held in the Lakeview Room at Kennedy High School on Friday, December 16 from 3 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Donors must be between 16 and 75 years of age and must weigh at least 110 pounds. 16-year-olds need parental approval. A form will be available at the drive. Those over 75 require a note of approval from their doctors. 

For further information, students can contact Daniella Torchia at dtor1323@aol.com. Parents and faculty can contact Anthony’s mother, Anna Torchia, at Anna@CoralSeaPools.com for appointments. Walk-ins are also welcome.

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