Red Cross officials with Eric Jellison, middle, after he won a trip to Super Bowl 60.Photo: Jared Brosnan/WBZ NewsRadio
DANVERS, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A Wakefield man has been giving the gift of life for years after suffering a traumatic injury as a teenager and needing someone's blood donations to save his life.
And now that gift of life that he's been giving is returning the favor of sorts.
After donating blood on Jan. 2, Eric Jellison learned he's the lucky winner of a random American Red Cross drawing for a trip to see the Super Bowl.
At a Red Cross presentation ceremony held in Danvers on Wednesday, Eric said winning the trip is just a bonus for doing something that he enjoys doing. "I love getting the alerts that the blood that I've donated has made its way to the hospital," he said. "I love to see that. It's a continuing pattern of other people benefiting from blood donations."
To help make winning the tickets even better, Eric said it's always been his dream to see a Patriots game in person.
And now, attending his first game ever will be Super Bowl 60. "I know it's going to be very overwhelming because I've been through so much in my lifetime and seen so much. To have this opportunity to see the team I love for the first time at the Super Bowl in this environment will be incredible."
Not only did Eric win a pair of tickets to the game, the package includes the trip to Santa Clara, California, pre-game activities, the Super Bowl Experience, and a $1000 gift card.
WBZ NewsRadio's Jared Brosnan (@JaredBrosnanWBZ) reports.