Atlanta Born, Louisville Inspired: Dr. Ricky Jones, Part 1

 

L to R: Kerry Norwood, Dr. Ricky Jones

When Kerry Norwood was a child, doctors did not think he would live past 16 years old. He was born with sickle cell disease and missed a lot of school due to being ill. Growing up in Atlanta, Kerry befriended Ricky Jones in 8^th grade. “He was nice to me. We lived in adjacent neighborhoods and played in the band together,” said Ricky.

That’s when Ricky started to learn about sickle cell disease. “I was a kid. I didn’t know anything about it. Because of Kerry, I learned about the disease and how it impacts people,” said Ricky. Kerry and Ricky have been lifelong friends ever since. They mean the world to each other. They are family.

September is Kerry’s birthday and sickle cell awareness month. Kerry celebrated his 56^th birthday last year, despite what doctors feared. Ricky is now Dr. Ricky L. Jones, Professor at the University of Louisville. Baldwin-King Scholar-in-Residence at the Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute and past chair of the Pan-African Studies Department.

A few years ago, Ricky spoke with the Red Cross about doing a blood drive specifically for sickle cell disease. “As Kerry aged, he has needed more blood transfusions. Sometimes it would be difficult for him to get access to blood,” Ricky said. “I said: you know, there are people going through this all over the country. It would be cool if we could do something targeting just sickle cell.” The Red Cross didn’t have their sickle cell initiative program at that time, so in many ways, Ricky created this idea and let it grow.

Ricky originated the Pan-African studies sickle cell blood drive at the University of Louisville. It’s hosted around Kerry’s birthday every year. “We are trying to do a little bit to help people struggling with the disease. It disproportionately affects African Americans or African descended people. But a lot of people don’t know that,” said Ricky.

Dr. Ricky Jones

How does he recruit blood donors on campus and in the community? “I tell my story. I make it personal,” Ricky said. He shares about his friendship with Kerry and offers extra credit for donating blood. Ricky’s message is inspiring because it’s vulnerable and raw: “Think about the people around you who you love most in this world. What if they needed blood because of some accident or some disease they are suffering from. How would you feel if there was no blood available?”

(Story continues in Part 2)