Donor Recruitments Are Held In Los Angeles, Boston, Yerevan, Gyumri, And Las Vegas
In the past several weeks, thousands of supporters in the United States and Armenia answered the call to attend recruitment drives organized by the Armenian Bone Marrow Donor Registry and become bone marrow stem cell donors, for a chance to save the lives of Alex Darbinyan and other patients. At every single recruitment drive, whether in California, Nevada, Massachusetts, Yerevan, or Gyumri, young supporters turned out in massive numbers.
The events were also attended by community and church leaders, including Western Primate Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Father Khajag Shahbazyan, and pastor of Las Vegas’ St. Geragos Armenian Apostolic Church Rev. Sasoon Zumrookhdian.
Alex Darbinyan, 13, is suffering from leukemia. In order to survive this life-threatening illness, he urgently needs a bone marrow stem cell transplant. Given the unique genetic makeup of ethnic Armenians, Alex’s transplant can be possible only if he is matched with a bone marrow stem cell donor from the Armenian community.
To help Alex find a life-saving match, his family teamed up with ABMDR to organize a series of recruitment drives in the United States and Armenia, with additional support from the Western Diocese.
The recruitment drives were held on April 6 and 26 at St. Leon Armenian Cathedral in Burbank; on April 18 through 22 at the ABMDR headquarters in Yerevan; on April 22 at St. James Armenian Church in Watertown, Massachusetts, during the Hye Café community event; on April 23 in Gyumri; and on April 30 at St. Geragos Armenian Apostolic Church in Las Vegas. ABMDR also held a recruitment drive for leukemia patient Jack Chorlian, on April 13, at St. Leon Cathedral. Every one of these drives sought to find donor matches for not only Alex and Jack, but many other ABMDR patients currently awaiting donor matches for their own life-saving transplants.
On hand at all the recruitment drives were scores of ABMDR volunteers who explained to supporters the simple, safe, and painless process of becoming a donor and welcomed them to the ranks of ABMDR. In all, over 2,000 supporters between the ages of 18 and 50 registered as potential bone marrow stem cell donors.
“The turnout was just incredible,” said Dr. Frieda Jordan, president of ABMDR. “It is extremely heartwarming to see our wonderful youth respond to the call for help, to see it rally around the cause of saving a fellow Armenian’s life without a moment’s hesitation. I would like to thank every single supporter who attended our recruitment drives and became a potential donor, as well as the families of our patients, Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, whose longtime support of our mission remains exemplary, Father Khajag Shahbazyan, and Rev. Sasoon Zumrookhdian.”
“Also, our very special thanks go to our sponsors, including Suzy Sogoyan; IceLink; Love Armenia and its team, with Ani Mardirosian; and Fuliane Petikyan / FANS With a Cause. We are deeply grateful for their generosity,” added Dr. Jordan.
In a video appeal to supporters, posted on ABMDR’s Facebook page, Arpine Zohrabyan said, “Alex’s journey has impacted our lives beyond measure. His fight against leukemia will continue to further highlight the importance of being the ‘one’ to donate. Consider yourself the ‘lucky’ one if you are the match, as it gives you a new purpose and drive to do that much more.”
Zohrabyan is herself a bone marrow donor. Since donating bone marrow stem cells some years ago, she has become a dedicated advocate of ABMDR’s life-saving mission, joining the organization’s board and helping coordinate all recruitment drives. In her video appeal, Zohrabyan also mentioned that on April 30, as ABMDR volunteers were on the flight to Las Vegas for the recruitment event there and the flight attendant, Kimberly, learned of the purpose of their trip, she asked everyone in the cabin to raise their hands and join them together in the shape of a heart, offering prayers for Alex. All 140 passengers fulfilled the flight attendant’s request, in a show of solidarity with the young Armenian patient.
Established in 1999, ABMDR, a nonprofit organization, helps Armenians and non-Armenians worldwide survive life-threatening blood-related illnesses by recruiting and matching donors to those requiring bone marrow stem cell transplants. To date, the registry has recruited over 32,000 donors in 44 countries across four continents, identified over 9,000 patients, and facilitated 38 bone marrow transplants. For more information, call (323) 663-3609 or visit the ABMDR website.
