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Young Mom Who Hemorrhaged After Giving Birth Meets 7 Strangers Who Saved Her Life

WESTWOOD (CBSLA.com) — A young mother who nearly died from massive bleeding after giving birth met the seven strangers who helped save her life.

Jennifer Calderon hemorrhaged just after delivering her now 9-month-old son, Henry. Within a matter of minutes, she lost her entire blood volume.

"I could have died, I wouldn't have been a mother to my children," she said.

Calderon's husband, Dustin Schmuldt, was in the delivery room and watched with terror.

"I just remember the doctors… instead of doing a very routine baby delivery… becoming frantic and running around and asking for blood and bringing more doctors into the room. It was very scary for a long time," he said.

Thanks to doctors at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and blood from donors like Megan Cory, Calderon is alive.

"I have to do practically nothing and it's saving someone's life. It's one of the best feelings in the world," Cory said.

Ricardo Barboza, a deputy fire marshal at UCLA, also donated blood that helped Calderon. He's been giving blood since he was an undergraduate student at the Westwood campus.

"I'm not able to give money to charity a lot, so I just spend a couple hours every couple weeks and give platelets to try and help out," he said.

For Calderon, blood donation meant the difference between life and death.

"It's very hard for me to even say the words because I get very emotional over what could have been had it not been for the generosity of these people," Calderon said.

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