Gift of Life – The Big Meet

On the eve of The Big Meet we enjoyed a nice dinner in Paramus with Gift of Life staff members, Gregg and Tamara.  We had an opportunity to ask questions about the process from their perspective and to tell about Jeff’s diagnosis, treatment, transplant and our exchange of letters with Nicole.  We talked about the many people who had a hand in the matchmaking:  from Nicole’s swabbing at an event to the lab technicians who processed her sample and those who identified her as Jeff’s match, the Gift of Life staff members who tracked down Nicole’s aunt and eventually Nicole, the medical staff who collected her marrow, the volunteer who took the marrow from New York to Philadelphia, etc.  Jeff figures thousands of hands had something to do with his recovery.  You have to feel a little jealous of people like Gregg and Tamara who get to work daily toward such happy outcomes.  Anyway - good food, good company.

We woke up early on the big day.  Jeff was nervous about speaking in front of a crowd although he was well prepared.  We were both a little giddy as we waited to head over to Van Saun Park.  I confess that I found myself pacing the hotel room aimlessly.

The Big Meet did not disappoint although there was one minor glitch.  Nicole did a beautiful job on stage talking about her experience but instead of Jeff telling his story, his time on stage was spent standing by while someone else related his tale.  It’s all good.  It probably saved us all from getting too blubbery as we most certainly would have if he’d delivered his heartfelt message to Nicole in front of the microphone.  Instead, he delivered his speech after the walk to a small crowd including Nicole, a few family members and myself.  (There were tears.)  Later Ruth, a Gift of Life staffer, told Jeff there would be no problem checking “public speaking” off his bucket list.  She will see to that! 

Jeff and Nicole led the walk, Nicole’s husband, Scott, and I followed.  Our team of twelve family members walked and ran by us. Our team members were able to spend some time after the walk/run getting to know Nicole and Scott.  We felt immediately as though they were extended family to us.  Lots of laughter, plenty of hugs, good conversation… a joyful occasion.

There is no gift we could have bought for Nicole to appropriately commemorate the occasion.  We’d decided hand-crafted gifts were the way to go.  Jeff, of course, made a spoon and spatula for Nicole.  And we presented her with a children’s book that we began writing for her children around the time we learned her identity in May.  It is based on the transplant experience and is called The Butterfly and the Carpenter Bee.  You can probably guess which one is Nicole and which one is Jeff. 

The Mel Cohen Memorial 5K for Gift of Life was a great celebration for bone marrow donors and recipients!  It was wonderful to talk to other recipients, hear their stories, celebrate their survival and to hear about their meetings with their donors.  We had the pleasure of meeting Jay Feinberg, founder of Gift of Life.  He is a soft-spoken, gracious man.  It was an honor to meet him and thank him for his part in Jeff and Nicole’s story.  

We also met a few donors and caregivers.  Mel Cohen’s wife, Sandy, told us Gift of Life and Mel’s donor gave her four more years with Mel.  She is grateful for those bonus years.  This event, in Mel’s memory, is a successful fundraiser for Gift of Life, the top team raising an incredible $20,000 for the organization.  All of the proceeds will cover processing costs associated with swabbing.  (Thank you, team members Becky, Sam and Kerry for swabbing!)

We had lunch with Nicole, Scott, Kerry and Kim and spent the rest of the day, into the evening and the following morning talking and talking and talking.   Nicole and Scott were polite enough to watch a slideshow of our un-edited Bermuda photos as well as several shots of little Rosie.  (Theresa and Rosie were not able to share the occasion due to a medical emergency in Theresa’s family.  They could use your prayers.)  

Jeff and I thank all of you for your love, prayers and support on this momentous occasion.