This week, I was privileged to interview Marika Raff, an extremely involved junior at UC Santa Barbara, who is part of an amazing organization called Be the Match. After talking to Marika, it was evident how passionate she is about this organization and how important it is for others to get involved, either by volunteering or by registering to become a bone marrow donor. Please do your part to make a difference in another person’s life!
Q: What is Be the Match and how did you get involved?
A:Be the Match is one of the largest bone marrow donor programs in the world with nearly 9 million registered donors. The foundation helps to educate and offer support to families and patients that are in need of a bone marrow donor. In addition, Be the Match works to match donors and patients, educate physicians on cutting-edge transplant techniques, and fund continued research.
I became involved with Be the Match after my dad was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. After receiving chemotherapy his oncologists indicated that his severe type of leukemia required a bone marrow transplant. My family and all of our relatives were tested to see if any of us were a match for my dad. My aunt ended up being a match and she donated her stem cells to save her brother’s life. Although we were fortunate to have found a donor within our family, I knew that thousands of other families weren’t so lucky and turned to bone marrow registries such as Be the Match to find donors. My dad’s life having been saved, I was determined to be a part of the foundation and hopefully be given the opportunity to donate to another patient in need. Not only did I register to become a donor, I realized that attending a large university such as UCSB gave me access to an enormous number of potential donors and that I could contribute more than signing up to be a donor.
Q: What are the different things you do to volunteer for Be the Match?
A: As a volunteer for Be the Match I am working on bringing awareness about bone marrow donation to the community and finding new donors to register. We are working on events such as the Santa Barbara Fair where we will be registering new donors and working to familiarize the community with the registry. Our events strive to go into the community to educate people on the process of donating and the ease of registering to become a donor, which only requires a simple cheek swab.
In conjunction with Be the Match I am planning a bone marrow drive on campus during spring quarter. I hope to educate our campus about the great need for bone marrow donors and to emphasize that every one of us is capable of saving a life. This event will be the first of its kind and Be the Match is eager to become a presence on our campus and continue to work with students into the future. I plan to talk with students in classrooms, clubs, and within the Greek community to raise awareness about the registry and the process of becoming a donor. I knew very little about bone marrow donation before my dad got sick and I want to share my story so that students have the resources and information to choose to become donors.
Q: When did you start volunteering for Be the Match?
A: I began working with Be the Match this past summer. After receiving my official bone marrow donor card I knew that I would have to wait and see whether I would be anyone’s match and I felt that I could offer more help. I wanted to host a bone marrow drive but knew that I would need the guidance of the foundation. After many conversations plans are finally coming together and our first event together will be the Santa Barbara Fair and later in the quarter the bone marrow drive on campus.
Q: How did you learn about this organization?
A:I learned about Be the Match after my dad had received his stem cell transplant. Although I wasn’t his match I knew that there were thousands of other patients around the world going through the same frightening process and I wanted to join the largest bone marrow registry. My dad’s oncologists told me about Be the Match and I immediately signed up for my cheek-swab kit so that I could register with their program. The process was so easy and organized I knew that they would help me achieve my goal of hosting a bone marrow drive at UCSB and educating my community about the little known need for bone marrow donors.
Q: Is there any event coming up/ way people can get involved in Be the Match?
A:An upcoming event that Be the Match and I are involved in is the Santa Barbara Fair & Expo and we are looking for volunteers to help add people to the registry. The Fair schedule looks like this:
Wednesday, April 27th 4:00-9:00pm
Thursday, April 28th 4:00-9:00pm
Friday, April 29th 4:00-9:00pm
Saturday, April 30th 11:00am-9:00pm
We are looking for people to pass out flyers, assist with information tables, sell raffle tickets, help fundraise and help register people at our main table in the exhibition hall.
I am also looking for help with advertising, fundraising, and organizing the bone marrow drive on campus, which is planned for later in the quarter. This will be an exciting event as it’s the first time Be the Match has worked with UCSB students. In addition I hope that every student will consider registering as a donor in addition to volunteering his or her time.
These events are a great way for students to become involved with the Santa Barbara and UCSB community and to help facilitate saving lives across the world.
Q: Why would you think Be the Match is important to get involved in?
A:By working with Be the Match either as a volunteer or as a donor you are assuredly saving lives that would otherwise be lost without a compatible bone marrow donor. Patients suffering from illnesses that require a bone marrow transplant are often capable of making a 100% recovery and leading normal lives. Sadly, many patients do not find a donor and lose their fight against their illnesses. These deaths are preventable and as the number of bone marrow donors grow within the registry so too do the number of potential matches for each patient. By registering as a donor with Be the Match you can be the person that a family has desperately searched for to save the life of their loved one. By volunteering your time with Be the Match you can raise awareness about the program to ensure that communities are educated and understand the great need for bone marrow donors. I never thought that I would depend on the generosity of a bone marrow donor to save my dad’s life and I hope that as the number of donors grows that every patient gets a second chance at life.
Q: Is there any other additional information you would like to tell us?
A:Anyone interested in becoming a volunteer and/or registering as a bone marrow donor should feel free to contact me at marikaraff@umail.ucsb.edu. I am also happy to answer any questions about the process of donating and how to become more involved with Be the Match.