Gene Kauffman

Age: 83.

Family: Wife, two children.

Residence: Yuba City for the past 52 years; I also have property in Cohasset and in Oregon.

Occupation: Worked for the Sutter-Yuba Mosquito Abatement District.

Hobbies, interests: I like to hunt and work on my tree farm.

When did you start donating blood? In 1951 — after Army training, my comrades went to Korea and I went to Baltimore for a few months before going to San Francisco. I couldn't be in Korea, but could contribute to the war effort.

How much blood have you donated? I have donated 30 gallons or 240 pints of blood. It's easy to do and it serves others.

Where do you get your news? Appeal-Democrat.

What brought you to Yuba-Sutter? A good job — I had just gotten out of grad school, a year in Berkeley, and came as assistant manager and entomologist. Before that I was in Pendleton, Ore.

What did you like about the area? I liked the fact there was not a lot of snow and ice in the wintertime. I learned to live with the heat.

Where would you like to live someday? If I had to move, it would be New Zealand. I love that place. It reminds me of what California was like in the 1930s.

What is the closest you've been to a famous person? I was not far from (runner) Jesse Owens, (boxer) Archie Moore and matinee idol Lanny Ross at a Boy Scout Jamboree in 1969 in Idaho. They were there as inspirational speakers.

Who has had a strong influence in your life? My parents and grandparents.

What did you want to be when you were a kid? A Marine.

Favorite places to go to in the area: Trinity County — we moved from Eureka to Burnt Ranch and lived there from 1937 to 1950. I grew up in the mountains.

What are some of your fondest memories? Deer hunting with my grandfather as an adolescent.

What is your pet peeve? Clerks who talk with fellow clerks while they are waiting on me to check out.

Favorite book: "Miracle at Philadelphia" about the framers of the Constitution, the trials and travails they went through. It sounds like today.