Bone marrow drive aims to save lives

Story by Claire Sullivan, Writer

Baker Serves will host a bone marrow registration on Tuesday, March 8, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Long Student Center. The club has been organizing this bone marrow event for several years.

“I think it is just cool to get people involved and [for] people that want to make a difference but don’t know how to,” Baker Serves President Madison Lutz said. “They can sign up and be a match for a random person and save a life if they want to.”

Baker Serves will have three different stations in the Long Student Center. Potential bone marrow donors will learn about the process. Students who are eligible to become bone marrow donors will need to fill out information and be swabbed.

“I don’t feel like many people know all the facts behind being a bone marrow donor,” Lutz said.

The purpose of the event is to get more people into the National Bone Marrow Registry so there are more matches for those who need help.

Potential donors will stay on the list until they are 61 years old.

There is only a 1 percent chance of an exact match. Over the past events, Baker has had seven potential donors who have been an exact match with another person’s bone marrow.

“That actually is really good considering how small our campus is,” Baker Serves Public Relations Chair Alishah Budina said.