Nurses and volunteers working on behalf of Versiti Blood Center of Illinois collect blood inside the J.A. Air Center at the Aurora Municipal Airport in Sugar Grove Saturday during a huge blood drive known as "A Pint for Kim." (David Sharos / The Beacon-News)

Those passing by the Aurora Municipal Airport Saturday could have easily believed some sort of party was going on, but those there were actually saving lives.

The third annual “A Pint for Kim” — one of the largest blood drives in the country — was being held in the memory of Kim Benedyk Sandford, a 49-year-old Naperville woman who died March 3, 2020, following an eight-year battle with cancer.

The event included a car show, food truck, live music, free plane rides and other activities but the real purpose was to collect more than 1,000 pints of blood, which would be a new state record.

Sandford’s sisters christened it, “A Pint for Kim.” It first held on March 8, 2020, just five days after Sandford passed away, and it’s now become an annual Mother’s Day weekend gathering.

The first time it was held they collected 500 pints, which was a new record they topped last year despite the pandemic. This year they topped it again.

Naperville residents Rob Sandford and his sister-in-law, Kristyn Jo Benedyk, share a moment Saturday during the blood drive in honor of Sandford’s late wife, Kimberley Benedyk Sandford, at the Aurora Municipal Airport in Sugar Grove. (David Sharos / The Beacon-News)

“I feel more like people are planning to come out and spend a few hours here doing the car show and plane rides and food trucks and bands,” Kristyn Jo Benedyk, 41, of Naperville, Kim’s younger sister and the blood drive’s cofounder.

“In the past it was sort of make an appointment, show up and go home. The festival feel is creating more of an interest in people coming out for the day,” she said.

She said she’s noticed two changes about this year’s event — the responses they’re getting from strangers to their effort and how survivors are handling the loss of Kim.

“A (public relations) person working with us sent us a message about a posting she saw on Facebook from a stranger neither of us knows who put up a photo of one of our yard signs which she said ‘are all over town,’” Benedyk said.

“The woman wrote, ‘I got curious and read the story and cried and wished I knew Kim and signed up. We all want to give mothers the gift of time this year for Mother’s Day and I have room in my bus and am willing to drive if anyone wants to come with me.’”

Benedyk said her nephews, who were only 11 and 13 when their mother died, are becoming much more expressive two years later “about what this means to them and taking ownership of it.”

Blood donations were managed by the Versiti Blood Center of Illinois at the drive.

Emily Alanis, Versiti’s regional manager of donor recruitment, said she was overwhelmed by the number of volunteers on hand Saturday, noting there were “more volunteers than staff” at the event.

“We have over 145 volunteers today and 70 staff, which is wonderful,” Alanis said. “We use about 20 volunteers for the blood drive and the rest are out at the celebration greeting donors (and) helping them get to other places at the site. We’re doing well and the beds are filling up.”

Alanis said donors “are only in the chair for 15 minutes.”

John and Darrien Nitto, a father and son from Yorkville, said this was the first time they attended the “Pint for Kim” effort.

Yorkville resident John Nitto gives blood at the J.A. Air Center at the Aurora Municipal Airport in Sugar Grove Saturday during the "A Pint for Kim" blood drive. (David Sharos / The Beacon-News)

“I know the need for blood when people go to the hospital is there and we’re here doing our due diligence for what we can do for people and help in any way we can,” John Nitto said. “It’s a small sacrifice and does so much more good. This is the first time I’ve given blood and it’s not been a problem.”

Darrien Nitto said he was surprised at the turnout and that “for sure, I’ll be back next year.”

“We wanted to come out today for the car show but what’s happening here today is awesome,” he said. “It’s great people want to do this.”

Karen Sitzman, of Naperville, said “my youngest daughter is in the same class as Kim’s (Sandford) youngest son.”

“We’re neighbors too,” she said. “I’ve been here all three years and it’s amazing to see the support and how it’s expanded from the first one. The volunteers are amazing and her sisters and family have done a fabulous job.”

Rob Sandford, Kim’s husband, called the event “humbling and bittersweet.”

“This is something that Kim really wanted to see happen before her passing after a lot of transfusions and all the procedures that she had,” he said.

“She joked with her doctors saying, ‘Don’t worry — we’ll pay you back,”’ he said. “Kim’s sister and cousin really went over and above in putting this together and the amount of support we’ve had and strangers saying they wanted to do something, it’s kind of a movement now.”

David Sharos is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.