2023-11-08

Cookville blood drive in memory of Whynotts Settlement man

COOKVILLE - The public is invited to roll up their sleeves in tribute to a Lunenburg County man whose widow is championing a blood drive in his memory.

Cancer claimed the life of Whynotts Settlement resident Timothy Wade Childs in August 2022 but, before he died, his spouse promised him his name wouldn't be forgotten.

"I can still see the smile on his face when I told him I would be doing a blood drive in his honour every November for his birthday," said Carla Zinck-Childs in comments contained on a poster promoting the Canadian Blood Services event in Cookville.

Timothy Childs was diagnosed with metastatic gastro-esophageal cancer in February 2022. Growing weaker by the day while waiting for a treatment plan, he had surgery to insert a feeding tube but the operation didn't go well and he ended up developing sepsis, a serious medical condition caused by the body's significant immune reaction to an infection, in a second surgery.

In the fight to keep him alive, Childs would receive 15 blood transfusions in 56 days while in a medically-induced coma with multiple organ failure. The 50-year-old died just six months after his cancer diagnosis.

"I will always have a place in my heart for the 15 wonderful people who donated blood, so I was able to have my lovebug just a little bit longer," Zinck-Childs said. The couple had been together 14 years but married just a month before his passing.

The drive takes place at the Best Western hotel, off Highway 10, on Nov. 9. The timeframe is noon to 3 p.m. and 5 to 7 p.m.

People are encouraged to go to www.blood.ca on the internet and use the event ID# 572597 to book an appointment or call 1-888-2-DONATE.

Timmy Childs was born in Lunenburg on Nov. 24, 1971. He worked at sea during his life, starting as a deckhand on scallop draggers when he was a teen.

"He enjoyed going on adventures with his wife, always stopping at yard sales, playing his video games and spending Christmas with his in-laws," reads a published obituary.

Childs was survived by his wife, along with his father, two brothers, a son and daughter, among other family members.

People were invited to make memorial donations in his memory to the Heart and Stroke Foundation, Canadian Blood Services and VON Lunenburg County.