Personal Favours

This post is a bit different, and more difficult to start than I thought it would be. It is quite personal. Wow! A personal post on a blog? Imagine that! I must the the first to have ever done that!! (Tongue firmly in cheek.)

A dear friend of mine, and known also to many Africammers who might read this blog, has a very special grandson. Young Nate didn't grow properly, and although his shining brown eyes follow the action of his older brother and friends while they play, he is too fragile to run and join in. He frequently gets sick. Tests found that he suffers from a rare genetic disease, called Fanconi Anemia. FA is an inherited disease that can lead to bone marrow failure and cancer. It is so rare that only about a dozen families in Canada are affected.

He would need a bone marrow transplant, but nobody in his family is a match. The transplant will not cure FA, but will give Nate a chance at a more normal life. The family is reaching out to ask people to register to be swabbed for a possible match. You could be the OneMatch that saves someones life. Perhaps you are not a match for Nate, but maybe you might be for someone else who is also looking for a donor.

Living too far away? You don't have to physically go to the clinic to be swabbed; you could also register online to have a kit sent to your home.

Please see the poster with Nate's picture (click to enlarge) for the clinic hours and address.

 If you have young children, nephews and nieces or grandchildren, perhaps purchasing a new story book might be up your alley and you are still helping! Part of the author's income will be donated to the FA Research fund in Canada.
Teddy Bear Stories by Tom Germann


No Kindle? No worries!
Remember you don't need a Kindle to read - the free Kindle app on Amazon can be used to read Kindle format books on your phone, tablet or computer. I love mine, especially because I now always have a book in my pocket.

To learn even more about young Nate and this rare disease, a Powerpoint Slideshow was prepared by the family.  I converted it to FLV and uploaded to YouTube to make it easier to view. No sound, but read the text, it only takes a minute. 

THANK YOU for reading, sharing and perhaps getting swabbed!

BLOOD DONATION

Since I'm asking favours -- told you this was a very personal post! 

Maybe you have seen this blog before, maybe not. On an earlier post I mentioned that I haven't been able to get permission for my adult sons, both blood donors for almost a decade, to donate blood to be used during my upcoming brain surgery. (Read Surgery update - scroll down a bit to the second paragraph under the heading "Meningioma")

Today I found that there is a special program where friends and strangers can donate blood in honour or remembrance of someone.

So this is my request: Since I would need about 2 litres of blood (4 pints) during my surgery next month, would a few people reading here be willing to go out to donate back to the pool, please? When you do, you can mention your intentions to the person tending to you, and you will be given a special card to mail if you wish to do that. Of course anonymous donations work too!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for replenishing the pool, in honour of a friend or loved one. (If you can't donate blood due to previous illness or disease, there is a program to donate blood for research. LINK )

Donate blood in honour of someone: Program link

Thank you for reading and sharing this post. Links are below; just click the one(s) you wish to use.