When Ed Muster learned that Gift of Life needed to fund collection center suites so that more donors could give lifesaving stem cells to blood cancer patients, as a long-time supporter of the organization, he knew he wanted to make that charitable gift.
“I was touring the collection center and looking around at the amazing state-of-the art equipment and told Gift of Life Associate Director of Development Mindy Ginsberg that I wanted to make a meaningful donation – how could I do it?”
Mindy helped Ed direct monies from his 401(k) plan required minimum distribution to Gift of Life, which lowered his taxable income and counted as a full deduction, giving him a benefit as well.
“The whole thing is really about the good feeling and pleasure of being part of a mission that helps others survive – that has been a tremendous benefit to me,” said Ed. “I chose to sponsor a donor suite and it’s been very heartwarming and pleasurable for me. People come in to donate blood stem cells to save lives, and I was able to help that happen. It gives me a warm feeling every time I hear that something I’m involved with has done good.”
A new plaque in the Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Gift of Life-Be The Match Collection Center celebrates Ed and his wife Adeline’s generous contribution. He and his daughter, Kim Delprete, visited the collection center when it was installed.
“I became involved with the registry many years ago,” said Ed. “Then multiple connections emerged over the years that kept me involved, and now I’m happy to be able to offer this support for a mission that results in saving the lives of so many people.”
Although Ed had long been a supporter, when he retired in 2016, he moved to Florida and became even more involved with Gift of Life through his friend, neighbor, and longtime volunteer Gail Oliver.
“Gift of Life is right here where I live, and Gail always has something going on,” said Ed. “I became involved in the Steps for Life 5k every January and then went to various events in the area, including running donor recruitment drives. One of the most amazing things is when a marrow donor and recipient would be introduced to each other for the first time. You really see and feel the impact of this incredible organization when you meet someone whose life has been saved and see the effect it has on their family. When I get a notice saying a donor we swabbed at a drive has saved a life, it’s an unbelievable feeling.”
Ed’s first encounter with blood cancer came the year before Gift of Life Marrow Registry began. In 1990, drives were being held to find a bone marrow match for Allison Atlas, a young woman who was battling leukemia but had no match available. People turned out in large numbers to be tested for her, not only in the United States, but also in Israel and Eastern European countries.
“I was living in Edison, N.J. and a drive was being held for her at the Armory in East Brunswick,” said Ed. “I went to the drive, and they took blood for testing – this was back before they used the swabs. That’s how I learned about bone marrow donation and the registry, and I still have the donor card they gave me. I was never called and I’m glad no one had cancer and needed me, although I would have donated if I was asked to.”
The following year, 1991, Jay Feinberg was diagnosed with leukemia, and his family began a national and international search to find his matching marrow donor, and resulted in the founding of Gift of Life.
“I became aware of Jay’s search and supported the organization on and off over the years,” said Ed. “I didn’t realize at the time how many ties I would have to Gift of Life.”
“My daughters both went to the University of Maryland, and my youngest, Marlo, met her fiancé there, Ira Greenspan, who was from East Brunswick,” said Ed. “Several years after they were married he called me and said, ‘I just got a call from Gift of Life, I’m a match for a man in Venezuela.’ I asked him how he happened to be in the registry, and he said that back in 1990, when he was 18, he went to the Armory to be tested during a drive for a young woman. We had both joined the registry there that day!”
“Ira went through with the bone marrow donation,” said Ed. “His recipient, Solomon Baum, was about 60 at the time. After he recovered and they were able to exchange information, they became friends. Solomon’s daughter lived in Florida and when she got married, he invited Ira and Marlo to the wedding, where he told the whole place that Ira had saved his life. He and his family became part of our family, we went back and forth to family events, and he lived into his 80s and was able to see his grandson’s Bar Mitzvah.”
It turned out that Ira’s and Solomon’s families had both fled Poland, Ira’s to the United States, and Solomon’s to Venezuela.
“When you saw them together, they had the same hair, the same facial features, they looked like a father and son,” said Ed. “This just reinforces that there’s a genetic connection between donors and recipients, and when you join the registry you are probably helping someone who is distantly related to you.”
But that’s not the end of the story.
“My cousin Michael was diagnosed with blood cancer not long ago, and he received a transplant and is doing very well nine months later,” said Ed. “When you do something like support Gift of Life, you could be taking action that will help someone in your family, or even distant relatives you don’t even know about.”
“I worked 54 years and I wanted to find a good charity where I could do what I always wanted to do and give a useful gift,” said Ed. “It’s been very rewarding, and I feel very good about being able to give money to a very good cause.”
Ed worked in the financial sector as a broker of tax-free bonds, as well as in the medical sector selling the equipment and devices used in open-heart surgery. He and his wife Adeline moved from New Jersey to South Florida in 2016, and remain committed to supporting Gift of Life’s mission.