A Georgia Southern University student is saving lives, and is now receiving national recognition for her work. In May 2022, Brianne Dollar attended a gala in Los Angeles for Gift of Life, an organization supporting bone marrow transplants. Dollar has been an ambassador for the organization for years and is responsible for organizing events in the group’s name.

Gift of Life Marrow Registry will host a donor recruitment drive for Rose Bradwell, at the Newburgh Illuminated festival. Rose is a 46-year-old wife and mother of three daughters who is battling leukemia and in urgent need of a blood stem cell or bone marrow transplant in order to survive.

The story begins in 1996 when Zalman got his cheek swabbed by Gift of Life at the Jewish Renaissance Fair. For 20 years, he didn’t think about the fact that he had put himself on a bone marrow registry, but then in 2016, Gift of Life reached out. He was a perfect match to a man named Michael, who had been told he only had a year to live after being diagnosed with Lymphoma.

On Sunday, May 1, Port Washington’s own Community Synagogue held another successful Mitzvah Day. The annual event was run by the synagogue’s clergy, administration, and over 250 volunteers, which aimed to help the community in various ways. In addition, over 20 nonprofit organizations helped throughout the day, guiding volunteers to projects, such as crayon recycling and cooking lasagnas. These organizations included the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Registry, the North Hempstead Animal Shelter, the Stepping Stone Preschool and many more.

Last week, we were honored to receive the 2022 Corporate Partner Award from the Gift of Life Marrow Registry at its annual One Huge Night Los Angeles Gala at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. In addition to raising funds for the organization, the Gift of Life Gala offers a chance for transplant recipients and their donors to meet in person for the first time.

Miami University graduating senior Zoe Kelley was sitting in class when she learned that a cheek swab she did during a marrow donor recruitment drive on campus was a match for a 69-year-old patient battling leukemia.