Bone Marrow Drive Today in Palm Desert

The Coachella Valley Water District is holding a bone marrow donor drive today in hopes of helping one of its own.

The drive, held with Be the Match bone marrow registry and the City of
Hope, is scheduled for noon to 5 p.m. at the district's administration office
in Palm Desert. City of Hope in Duarte is where water district General Manager-
Chief Engineer Steve Robbins, a 25-year employee and longtime La Quinta
resident, is getting treated for leukemia, district spokeswoman Heather Engel
said.

"With him going through that process, we became aware how hard it is to
find a match,'' Engel told City News Service. "If we can't help him, we
(can) help somebody.''

More than 6,000 critically ill people search the registry for a match at
any given time. There are about 10 million people in the registry, yet many
have difficulty finding a suitable match, Engel said.

Anyone 18 to 60 is eligible to be a donor. Prospective donors fill out a
health questionnaire and give a DNA sample taken by swabbing the inside of
the mouth.

Robbins, a former La Quinta planning commissioner and longtime member of
the La Quinta Rotary Club, has been involved in several statewide water-
related organizations, including serving on the boards of the State Water
Contractors and Association of California Water Agencies. He and his wife,
Karen, have three daughters and one grandson.

To participate in the drive, call the district at (760) 398-2661, ext.
2243.