In September 2015, while studying at Transylvania University in Lexington, Ky., Mary saw a table being manned by Gift of Life campus ambassadors asking people to join the registry.
“I heard what they had to say and it seemed like a good thing to do,” said Mary. “It was easy to sign up, I swabbed my cheek right there at the drive. I knew that if I did get the call that I matched, it was because someone really needed me, so I wanted to join for that hypothetical person.”
More than eight years later, in January 2024, Mary got a text from Gift of Life. She had matched with a 23-year-old man diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia who needed a peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) transplant.
“I didn’t believe it at first when I got the text, since it had been over eight years since I signed up,” said Mary. “So, I called the donor center number to make sure it was legitimate. Once I knew it was, I was a bit nervous about what the process would be, but very excited to be able to help someone at the same time.”
Something else pushed Mary to donate: a friend of hers had passed away from cancer less than two months before she was identified as a match.
“It felt like a sign,” said Mary. “This was something I could do for a person who still had a chance to beat cancer. It gave me a bit of comfort in that hard time.”
After Mary confirmed that the match was genuine, Mary told her family who were very supportive of her. The next people she had to tell were her Ph.D. advisors.
“The donation fell in the same semester as my Ph.D. defense,” said Mary. “Getting things sorted with school and work was a bit tricky, but Gift of Life worked with me to miss as little time as possible. Plus, I could work on my dissertation during my donation.”
Mary donated at the Adelson Collection Center located in Boca Raton, Fla., and Gift of Life organized travel for her and her father, who accompanied her during the collection.
“The donation day itself was mostly just sitting around enjoying my music and chatting with my dad,” said Mary. “I watched recorded old sets from my favorite band, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong. The day was very long, but overall, none of it was particularly painful. I felt well taken care of.”
Mary says that she would donate again if her donor needed it. She also wants others to know that the process is very easy.
“It was a very rewarding experience, and I am glad that I was able to do it.”
Mary, 27, recently graduated with her Ph.D. in Entomology from the University of Kentucky. She is now a postdoctoral scholar working as a research scientist in entomology in Lexington.