Mattapoisett resident Robert Kirkland has possibly saved 408 lives after having donated 17 gallons of blood over the past 40 years said Southcoast Hospitals Group Donor Program Coordinator Cathy Alegria.

“If they needed blood, they called me,” Kirkland said.

On February 28, Kirkland reached the 17-gallon milestone for Southcoast Blood Bank and St. Luke’s Hospital with a one-pint donation for his wife, Barbara.

“She was being treated for pneumonia and I gave her two pints,” Kirkland said. “But I haven’t charged her yet.”

For Kirkland, a retiree, giving blood on a regular basis is something he has done since he was 30 years old.

Kirkland, a member of the Wareham Elks Lodge, first donated a few pints to his fellow club members who were in need.

After that, Kirkland says he realized how much of a need there is for blood donors.

Now at age 70, he says he tries to get around to the blood bank after the eight-week waiting period between donations is over so he can give a little bit more.

“I like to give as soon as possible,” he said. “I always say this is one product you’re better off giving than receiving. If you’re receiving then it usually means something is wrong.”

Since 1972, Kirkland said he has become a popular “go-to guy” for the blood bank because his blood type is O-positive.

O-positive can be received by all positive blood types, Alegria said.

Less than 50 percent of Americans have the O-positive blood type, she said.

“His blood type is pretty much in line with the population and what can go with their blood types,” Alegria said.

When his wife was in the hospital, Kirkland donated two pints of red blood cells.

The blood bank looks for donors who are willing to donate red blood cells because they can be “tremendously” helpful in the emergency room, Alegria said.

“We love his red cells,” she said.  “They are the most popular request for people with trauma. Because they are losing red blood cells fast, we need red cells more than anything.”

With red blood cells, the waiting period between donations is twice the normal time.

Kirkland will have to wait 16 weeks before he can give once again.

When June 19 does roll around, Kirkland says he’ll be ready to make the trip to the blood bank, so long as he gets the ‘OK’ from his primary care physician.

“I keep doing it because I feel as though I’m helping somebody,” he said. “It’s a very simple thing to do. I feel better when I donate because it’s like getting an oil change.”

After all, he said, he has the easy job of just being a donor.

“The nurses are very professional about it,” he said.

“They do all the work, and I just sit there.”

While Kirkland may have to share the 17-gallon honor with New Bedford resident Terence Beehan, he said he’s not done yet.

“There’s not much to it at all,” Kirkland said.

“There’s always a need so I’ll keep going with it as long as I can keep donating.”