A BLOOD donor has been celebrated for helping to save 200 lives.

Sandra Flynn, of Forest Park Avenue, Clacton, has given blood 75 times and was given an engraved crystal plate by the National Blood Service to mark her achievement.

The desire to become a blood donor was sparked very early in the 57-year-old's life.

Her grandfather, William Ross, suffered a burst stomach ulcer when she was 13, and needed an urgent donation before an operation.

"I idolised him," said Sandra. "The blood transfusion kept him alive, and I decided to start giving blood as soon as I was 18."

Throughout her life, Sandra has continued donating blood regularly, even when she was working in Germany as a member of the Naafi (Navy, Army and Air Force Institutes).

It was in the early 1990s that the importance of her actions really hit home.

"My father, Fred Blunden, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia, three weeks before he retired at 65," said Sandra, a part-time administrator.

"He had been a boiler engineer and had never really been ill before that.

"His treatment meant he had to have lots of blood transfusions.

"Although he lost his battle with his illness, those units of blood gave him extra precious time with us."

Sandra is urging other people to donate blood if they don't already.

"It doesn't cost you anything but your time," she said.

"It's a chance to give something back to the community, even though you don't know the people you are helping."