Ballymena mum: 'Blood donors saved my son's life'
Archie Kirker was born with a rare heart condition
Recently, Downtown Cool FM highlighted the urgent need for new blood donors and brought you exclusive video from Northern Ireland's storage labs.
We revealed around 500 people need a life-saving blood transfusion every week in Northern Ireland and 115 new donors are required to meet the current demand.
The Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service says it is used for a wide range of patients- including children with leukemia, pregnant mothers and those with cancer.
However, just 6% of the population currently give blood.
One week after we brought you the urgent calls for new donors, a Ballymena mum has opened up about her child's experience of life-saving transfusions.
Ashley Kirker's son Archie was born with a rare heart condition.
He has had three open heart operations, his first when he was just three days old.
She told us the toddler has had to fight hard for survival:
"Archie was born with hypo-plastic left heart syndrome which basically means that the left side of his heart is so underdeveloped that it doesn't work.
"He only has half a heart, so to speak.
"It was very hard to hear, our whole world flipped outside down and we had to go to Birmingham a day after he was born."
During the surgery, the three-year-old's heart is stopped and blood donations are essential.
Ashley says he owes his life to anonymous donors:
"He's put on bypass, his heart is stopped, they need to still pump blood around his body and that comes from donor blood.
"Without that, that can't happen.
"Even when he is in recovery, he still needs a top up of blood which also comes from donors."
Archie is due to have a fourth operation this year and his family hope it will be his last.
He will need more blood and Ashley had a special message for anyone who isn't currently on the donor register:
"Sign up, donate, blood saves lives and he's the proof.
"He's here and he's as fit and healthy as he possibly can be and that comes to the surgeons the hospitals, the donors, everybody has played a massive part in that.
"We can't stress how important it is that people sign up if they can and I would urge anybody who's actually in the position to actually go out there and do it."