THE PRESIDENT [in reply to a question by Jimmy Carrick concerning the President's giving the first pint of blood].
I think you will find that the blood of a 68-year-old man is not fit for the boys. I would be perfectly willing to do it, but then I think if you consult the doctors in charge of this thing, they want young blood.
You have done a great thing. I understand that you have managed to collect 8,000 pints of blood--sent 40,000 letters to the soldiers and people who are out of the country and in the field. That is a great example. I wish every one of us would get that same habit, because that would contribute greatly to the ease of continuing our defense program on the basis on which it ought to be.
I congratulate you.
Note: The President spoke at 12:45 p.m. in the Rose Garden at the White House.
In a contest sponsored by the United States Junior Chamber of Commerce, Jimmy Carrick of Pittsburgh, Pa., had been designated "The Kid of the Year." The selection was made from a group of boys and girls between 5 and 15 who had been chosen on the basis of outstanding deeds of heroism, selflessness, and high moral and spiritual character. Jimmy, who had spent most of his 12 years in hospitals fighting spinal tuberculosis, was in Washington to begin a 6,000-mile cross-country trip to solicit more blood.
Harry S Truman, Remarks to Jimmy Carrick, Winner of "The Kid of the Year" Award Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/230852
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