Meet Lori Talbot and Marie Forrestal, two longtime friends who turned personal loss into a mission that's saving lives across the country. 🚑❤️ Earlier this year, they packed up an old ambulance (yes, plastered with their own faces!) and hit the road on Route 66, traveling from Chicago all the way to California. Their goal? Raise awareness about a nationwide blood shortage that most people don't even know exists. Here's the number that stopped us in our tracks: only 2% of ambulances across the country carry blood. That means up to 10,000 people die every year who could have survived if they'd received a transfusion before reaching the hospital. For Lori and Marie, this isn't just a statistic — it's personal. Marie is a cancer survivor. Lori's daughter needed blood transfusions as a baby, and years later, Lori's husband Bob relied on platelet donations before he passed away from cancer. "He was a very funny guy. He was a great cook, and the platelets revitalized him," Lori shared. "After he passed, I made a vow of saying yes to everything and living my life for two people." That vow led Marie to send Lori a voice-to-text message one day: "Crazy idea. Will you join me?" And just like that, the Miles of Kindness road trip was born. Along the way, the two women partnered with local communities to host blood drives and spread education, and they're proud to say they've helped generate over 1,000 new blood donations. "I think that we changed some lives," Lori said, "but more importantly, those people we talked to definitely changed our lives, and they've motivated us to go further. This is now a movement. It's not over yet." #MilesOfKindness #Route66 #GiveBlood #BloodDonation