Bone Marrow/Stem Cell Donor Drive

Wednesday, April 27 - 4-7 p.m. at Glacier Park Elementary, 23700 SE 280th St, Maple Valley, WA 98038

Sponsored by Be The Match, an organization that manages the largest and most diverse marrow registry in the world. At any given time, thousands of patients are searching the registry for an unrelated bone marrow donor who could potentially save their lives.

The process to join the registry is simple—some quick paperwork and a cheek swab. Once on the registry, individuals will be contacted if they’re determined to be a preliminary match for a patient. They would then undergo further blood work to determine viability as a donor. For more information on the donation process and other details, go to www.bethematch.org.

To join the registry, individuals must be between the ages of 18-44 years old.

This particular donor drive is being organized by Keri Heggenes, a Glacier Park kindergarten teacher, in my honor. I’m a Glacier Park parent/former staff, and was diagnosed with multiple myeloma one year ago. I’m facing my second stem cell transplant next month and am waiting for a donor to be found. We’ve become aware of the great need for marrow/stem cell donation, and would love to see some good come out of this challenging journey.