Family makes life-saving tribute in memory of grandmother

Family was the light of 93-year-old Peggy Batten’s life. When the family matriarch passed away June 7, her daughters, grandchildren and great-grandchildren knew how important they were to her and they were determined to keep her light shining.

“Nanna was very special to me,” granddaughter Jodi Hoffman said. “Nanna was always so fancy and took a lot of pride in her appearance, her friends, and most of all, her family. She would parade us around to meet new people every time we were in town to visit — it felt like I was a trophy she was proud to show off. She shared so much pride in all of her kids, grandkids and great-grandchildren.

“She celebrated every accomplishment with us and attended every graduation, making sure she was in the front row to have a good view,” Hoffman said. “Nanna never missed a party and would be sure to pause the chaos to say aloud, ‘Look what I created,’ as she relished in her greatest accomplishment — her family.”

Batten’s health had hiccups, Hoffman said. When she was given the decision at 92 to start regular medication infusions to potentially prolong her life, she declined treatment saying, “I can’t live my life tied to an IV pole. I have too much to do.”

Granddaughter Katy Bowles explained Batten had developed Myelodysplastic Syndrome, which is essentially the insufficiency of her bone marrow to keep up with the production of the blood products her body needed. She required blood transfusions every few months to replenish what her body was using. She used eight units of blood products since being diagnosed with MDS.

Hoffman said, “On many occasions she would need blood transfusions to replenish her blood count. She would always call afterward and tell me how perky she felt after receiving a transfusion to increase her energy so she could keep going, continuing to live her life how she wanted.”

Bowles remembers her grandma loved spending time with her family.

“She never missed a party,” Bowles said. “The last ‘party’ we had a few weeks prior to her passing was at my wedding. She was so looking forward to attending all of the wedding events. My mom, Laura, and nanna spoke every morning. She was able to dance with both myself and my husband at our wedding, which was so special. She loved to be in the middle of every event.”

Hoffman recalls the day Batten passed, “I had less than 24 hours to travel from Colorado to say my goodbyes. I made it in time to hold her hand and thank her for being the best nanna to me.”

Batten’s great-grandson, Butler County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Daniel Williams, remembers her as “such a kind and loving woman.”

Granddaughter Katy’s wedding was a milestone that Batten didn’t want to miss.

“That moment was only able to happen because of charitable people, that didn’t even know her, choosing to volunteer and donate their blood,” Williams said. “Therefore, I chose to donate my blood so that other families might get to have one last special moment with their loved one. I am convinced she would feel so much joy knowing the family she started responded to her passing by paying it forward so other families could experience special moments like she did in her last days.”

Hoffman remembers an announcement came over the hospital speakers while the family was gathered to say goodbye to Batten, saying a Red Cross blood drive was being held and extending the offer to participate.

Hoffman considered “it a sign from God to take the opportunity to repay the bank that extended the life of my grandmother. I looked at my sister, Katy, and said, ‘Would you go to donate with me?’ She agreed without hesitation.”

Bowles recalls, when the family was at the hospital, “We kept hearing the announcement. There was something telling me that was something we needed to do for her — give back to someone else what was given to her.”

Six family members joined, including Hoffman, three of cousins and Hoffman’s sister and brother-in-law. Some of them were first-time donors.

As they were checking in, the drive coordinator, was overheard saying, “You are never going to believe this, a family just walked in and they’re all ready to donate. We just met and surpassed our goal.”

Bowles and her husband, Wes, had O+ blood type, so they were offered the option to make a “power red” donation, which would allow them to donate double the amount at their appointment. They accepted and gave two units each. “While we donated, we explained to the Red Cross phlebotomists the reason we all were there was to share the legacy of my grandmother,” Hoffman said. “We had a great time sharing memories and turning the sad day into a day of gratitude for the life she lived.”

Blood drive employees who packed the red blood cells said the two extra units would likely go to babies in the NICU.

“I know she would’ve been really proud of us, just as she always was,” members of the family said. “Our family was her pride and joy.”

The family donated eight units of blood from six family members, which just so happened to be the same amount of blood Batten used when she was alive.

Eight units of blood “allowed her to remain perky, excited and in good health to make it to my sister’s wedding only three weeks prior,” Hoffman said. “As a family, we were able to give back the same amount of blood she required, I took that as a sign she was okay and was looking over us proud of what we had done. I am so grateful to the blood donors that allowed my nanna to keep living her life the way she had wanted.”

Each time Batten received a donation, it offered her more time with her family.

“She always did what was right and it felt like the right thing to do, to be selfless and donate to those in need in honor of her on the day of her passing,” Hoffman said. “I hope our donations allowed another family the opportunity to have another minute, hour, day, or year with their loved one in their time of need.

“It meant the world to me to have a grandmother who lived to be 93, with a mind as sharp as a tack even until the last moment,” Hoffman said. “Without the donations that she had received, I know we wouldn’t have been blessed with an extended amount of time that she was given. I encourage everyone to join a blood drive and donate. Your act of kindness can help someone in your community in a time of need. “

Batten is survived by two daughters, Susan (Terry) McVey and Laura (Tony) Zadnick; five grandchildren, Mike (Tiffany) Williams, Amy (Chris) St. John, John Williams, Katy (Wesley) Bowles, and Jodi (Hunter) Hoffman; six great-grandchildren, Isaiah and Daniel Williams, Chandler and Thatcher Beaton, Cooper and Natalie St. John.