What if there was a way to heal someone? To have the power to stop someone from dying? There is a way. And it’s you.
When you donate marrow, you’re giving someone a future — a chance to overcome life-threatening diseases like leukemia and lymphoma.
Potential donors can sign up to save a life at the upcoming “Be the Match” bone marrow donor registration event. The event takes place from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, June 8, at Palmer Elementary School, 7864 Hicks Road, Baldwinsville.
With a simple swab from inside your cheek, you’ll be added to the registry. All participants must be between the ages of 18 and 44. If you can’t make it to the event, register as a donor at join.bethematch.org/start/Eligibility.
The event is in memory of Aaron Andrew Atwater, who donated his bone marrow to his older brother, Craig, in 1998. Aaron passed away in December 2016.
The Atwater brothers’ unique and inspirational story lives on, and it is their family’s hope to lead an “army” of people to donate their bone marrow through Be the Match to come to the aid of others facing similar challenges. The family has created a Facebook page, Aaron’s Army, to raise awareness about the importance of marrow donation.
Brotherly love
Aaron was born in 1978, during a difficult birth, leaving him with cerebral palsy in the severe range, as well as seizures, life long respiratory problems, unable to speak and walk or use his hands. Doctors predicted he would not survive five years. Craig and his brother Chad were toddlers at the time, but immediately grew very close to their youngest brother. Craig, being the oldest, would learn to feed him and help care for him, always near his side.
In 1998, when Craig was 22, he was suddenly ill and diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia. This is a rare blood disorder which causes the immune system to wipe out all of the necessary blood cells to sustain life. He was rushed to Strong Hospital in Rochester, where both of his siblings were tested for compatibility, and a search was done on the National Donor Registry.
Miraculously, Aaron was found to be the perfect 6/6 match to his brother. Many considerations had to be made prior to allowing him to be the donor, given his many medical conditions, so the search for an unrelated donor continued until it was deemed that Aaron could proceed.
Craig had many setbacks during the time waiting for the transplant. Numerous infections from having no blood counts, reactions to medications and ending up in ICU with sepsis and heart failure. Fortunately, he recovered from all of it, but still had the grueling task of surviving the transplant and the pre conditioning chemotherapy and radiation before the transplant.
Aaron’s gift
On April 28, 1998, Aaron became a hero to his brother, Craig, by donating his life-saving bone marrow to him. His bone marrow was extracted and he woke up smiling and seemingly pain free. Fourteen days later, Craig’s counts began to rise and soared each day from there. He has had no effects from the transplant. His blood counts remain normal, 19 years later. He resides in Baldwinsville, with his wife Keri and three children, Maddie, Max and Jake.
“Aaron passed away Dec. 10, 2016, leaving a huge void in our hearts. We would like to continue to honor his wide smile, and spectacular life by asking each of you to consider bone marrow donation and participating in our bone marrow drive,” the Atwaters wrote in a release. “We are thankful for our gift of Aaron and invite you to be a part of his everlasting army of heroes.”
