Tracie organized a Gift of Life Marrow Registry donor recruitment drive in conjunction with Temple Israel’s annual Labor Day picnic in September 2013. At the time, she was the synagogue’s director of programming, located in West Bloomfield, MI. As the drive coordinator, she wanted to lead by example and was the first to be swabbed at the drive, which added 65 new donors to the registry. When she got the call that she was a match for a patient in need of a transplant, she saw it as an amazing opportunity to save a life. Tracie said, “In many ways, I was the lucky one.” 

 

A busy wife and mother of four small children (four-year-old Madelyn and two-year-old triplets Hannah, Blake, and Levi), Tracie was concerned about caring for her children while going through the marrow donation process. But with the support of her husband, family, and friends, her decision to proceed was an easy one. Tracie explained, “If I was ever ill and in need of a transplant, I would hope that somebody would do the same for me. Looking back on it now, going through blood work, doctor appointments, and some aches and pains is a small price to pay in order to save someone’s life.”

 

After her marrow donation, which she described as “easier than expected,” Tracie was excited to get her first update on her recipient’s condition. She shared, “He is doing the absolute best he can be doing—no sign of cancer—it’s amazing!” 

  

Tracie said that she would donate again in a heartbeat if asked and explained, “The day I joined the registry, I had a responsibility and an obligation. Receiving ‘that call’ gave me the opportunity to fulfill that responsibility.” She added, “My children are too young to understand what I did now, but I look forward to sharing my experience with them as they get older—what a valuable lesson!”