While he was excited about the lifechanging experience of visiting Israel, Ben never expected his Birthright Israel trip in 2023 would also have a huge impact on someone else’s life.

“Gift of Life visited our tour group and made a presentation about how stem cell transplants can help save lives,” he said. “I had never heard of this before, but that message prompted me, and the other 30 people in my tour group, to complete a cheek swab kit and join the registry.”

He was in the middle of the workday, about four months later, when his cell phone lit up with an unexpected call from Florida.

“I went into the conference room and was hovering over the ‘report spam’ button when I decided to take the call,” said Ben. “I’m so happy I picked up! You never expect to hear back when you sign up for things, but I had the chance to donate stem cells to a woman in her 50s diagnosed with leukemia. There had been people in my family who had cancer, and we couldn’t do anything about it, so it was nice to have the chance to help someone.”

Ben told his family and girlfriend that he had the unique opportunity to help save someone’s life. Since she is a nurse, Ben’s girlfriend did a little research for him and found out just how rare it is to match another person closely enough to donate blood stem cells to them. Only about 30% of patients find a match among their siblings; the other 70% must rely on the registry to help find an unrelated, volunteer donor.

Ben’s parents also recognized it was an important moment for him, and his father Jim accompanied him on his “donation vacation” to Gift of Life’s Adelson Collection Center in Boca Raton, Fla. The organization encourages donors to bring a companion with them, and provides accommodations at a nearby beach resort, along with airfare, transportation, and a meal stipend. 

“During donation they put you in a private room with a tv, videogames, and other stuff, but I talked with my dad and the collection center staff the entire time,” said Ben. “My dad videotaped me so everyone back home would know what was going on, but we never even turned the TV on. 

When he got home, one of Ben’s neighbors reached out to him to thank him for donating and expressed the wish that more people would join the registry, “as you never know what others are going through or when they may need help.” 

Ben expressed that he would like to meet his recipient someday.

“You don’t learn anything about the person for privacy reasons, but I would like to know if they are doing well, and what the procedure was like on their side,” he said. Donors and recipients must remain anonymous for the first year after the transplant. If Gift of Life receives updates from the transplant center during this period of anonymity, these are passed along to donors.

“The experience itself may seem like a small thing on the donor’s side,” said Ben. “But seeing how many people it touches – both within your own community and for the recipient and their family – donating stem cells is worth it. I hope everyone would consider joining the registry and stepping up if you match a patient.”

Ben, 27, is a graduate of Gettysburg College and lives in Somerville, Mass., where he works in data research. He is very active and loves to travel, and in recent years has been all over the world including most of Europe, Israel, and Hawaii. He loves hiking in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, hanging out with friends, and playing video games.