A few days ago, Hildy, one of our nurse case managers, stopped me in the hall. “I have an unbelievable story that I have to share with you,” she said. “Got a minute?” She had just returned from a day at one of our regional collection centers with a Gift of Life donor named Joe. I could see the emotion in her face. Clearly she had something special to share.

We sat down in the conference room, and she recounted her experience. Joe is a father, husband, son, and now, a hero.  Fifty-five years old, Joe works for the government and resides in Washington, DC. He swabbed his cheek to join the Gift of Life Registry in 2002 at a bone marrow drive held at Washington’s Adas Israel Congregation for a patient named Ruth Spector.

It was a nice morning when Joe arrived at the University of Maryland Medical Center for his donation. Hildy was there as an advocate, to make sure everything went smoothly and that Joe was comfortable during his donation procedure.

First, Joe received his final injection of filgrastim, the medication given to donors to prepare them for the donation process. With a few minutes to spare, Hildy and Joe went to enjoy some breakfast together. Joe noticed there were many patients in the cafeteria, all waiting for various treatments to combat a common enemy: cancer.

As Joe and Hildy were deep in conversation about his upcoming donation, a stranger walked over to them. She was a woman who appeared to be in her 40s. Her hair was short; clearly it had just started to grow back after chemotherapy. She introduced herself, apologized for “eavesdropping,” and asked: “Are you a stem cell donor?” Joe replied, “Yes, I am about to become a donor in just a few minutes.” Tears welled up in her eyes, and she shared her story. “I recently had a stem cell transplant, and have always felt as though I never had the opportunity to say thank you for my second chance at life.” She took a deep breath, looked Joe in the eyes, and said the words she had waited so long to say: “On behalf of all transplant recipients, thank you.”

Joe was speechless. But there was more. Hildy reacted with equal emotion, and shared her life experience with Joe too. Hildy had lost her husband to cancer years earlier. Although he was a candidate for a bone marrow transplant, he ultimately was not able to receive one. For Hildy, this was more than just a job. It was personal.

As Joe and Hildy walked out the door, Hildy started to cry. Joe put his arm around her, and said “It’s ok to cry, Hildy. Besides, you beat me to it!”

Later, Joe confided in her that their shared experience added an entirely new dimension to his donation. “When Gift of Life called me, I spoke to someone who made me an offer I simply couldn’t refuse. I treated it like anything else in my life; as a routine thing any person would do,” Joe said. “I consider myself incredible lucky and privileged to have had this experience. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.” For both Joe and Hildy, the experience they shared together will last a lifetime.