Published on Show Me Mizzou April 24, 2025
When Jaime Chailland — who died December 29, 2024, at age 63 — helped organize the first Red Cross blood drive on the University of Missouri campus more than 40 years ago, he had no idea it would become a national model.
What began as a modest idea hatched during his senior year, with help from a few friends and campus organizations, has since grown into the largest collegiate blood drive in the country. It remains a centerpiece of Mizzou’s Homecoming and a life-saving tradition embraced by students, alumni and the Columbia community.
“I had received blood back then, and it’s something I wanted to do to give back to the community… and it beat picking up trash on the Quad,” Chailland, BJ ’84, MBA ’86, recalled to the Red Cross during the drive’s 40th anniversary in 2023. “To me, it’s all about giving back to the community.” Surrounded by student donors at the Hearnes Center fieldhouse, he added, “You know, it’s not every day you can start a tradition like this. This is really incredible.”
Born November 9, 1961, Chailland most recently lived in Marthasville, Mo. Known formally as James Hassell Chailland III, at Mizzou he was a Beta Theta Pi member and elected Homecoming King.
Beyond the university, he helped launch the Best Buddies Missouri Jobs Program, which creates employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The initiative reflected his lifelong commitment to inclusion and public service.
According to the official obituary, Chailland is survived by his husband, S. Marshall McClure; his mother, Connie Jo Chailland; his brother Tony Chailland and wife Michelle, along with their family; and his sister-in-law Melody Manker and husband Bob, together with their family.
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