Part 5 of 8
Courtney introduced Akilah Gilbert as someone who supports sickle cell families everywhere — often with the bravest face in the room, even on hard days. Akilah's words were for everyone who showed up. Tap any quote to play the exact moment.
🎙️ In this clip: Courtney Slanacker · Akilah Gilbert
🔴 American Red Cross🟡 Event partners🟣 Sickle Cell Warriors & advocates🟢 Community voices🔵 From the audience
This is a true warrior right here, and we're so grateful for you
The story behind the blood
Akilah said she hadn't known Dr. Drew's whole story — and that seeing what he fought for changed how she thinks about every transfusion.
As a warrior, we get the blood, but we don't know all the story behind it.
to just know that somebody fought that hard to make that possible for me is awesome.
Showing up matters
It lets us know that the work that we're doing is not in vain
📄 Source: Iconic Excellence Comes to Tucson — The Loft Cinema, Tucson, Arizona, September 29, 2026. Quotes are verbatim from the recording's captions, and every timestamp was located in the caption file at build time.
← PreviousAudience Q&A #3: We Need to Know More About Sickle CellNext →Moses Akpan Receives the Sickle Cell Champion Award
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