On Wednesday, June 15th, I packed up my fold-able table and my box of BTM goodies and headed to John Pendergast School in Ansonia to set up and find more potential donors to sign up for the registry. What made this day unique was this was the first DRE I will hold under my club’s name, it is the first DRE held after school ends, and it is the first DRE I’ve attended that is held during evening hours.
There are two more summer DRE I will be attending and they are all optional for the club members because many of the club members’ summer schedules are busy and full. I held very low expectations for this DRE because it wasn’t a large event but event the smallest scaled events can attract a large population of people to ask or read over the material on the table. Yet, even after I set up, many pre-registered runners lingered about an imaginary bubble that had a radius of maybe 6-8 feet from my table.
I was happy to find a couple of passerbys who came by to ask if the set up referred to bone marrow donations, and I chatted with them for a bit before they head off to the 5K. One woman respected me for volunteering and dived into how her family relative was diagnosed by blood cancer who was lucky to receive a transplant. She then noted how it was a shame many didn’t stop by the table. I was very glad she reached out to talk to me and was open-minded about my efforts as a whole.
By the end of the day there, I’ve helped two people register for the registry which exceeded my very low expectations I had set coming into the event! I was also able to inform a young woman who was hesitating whether to join or not about the myths and facts of donating marrow and the benefits she’ll be able to provide a patient. Although her mom was egging her on to as well, I noticed she felt peer-pressured and politely declined but took home many flyers in case she changes her mind in the future. Because of that, I’m happy to contribute in her decision to think about joining the registry. It is a lengthy time commitment compared to a simple blood donation for the Red Cross but it is a life-saving opportunity!
Tomorrow is the second DRE at the Woodbridge Town Hall and I will definitely give an update.
-Lillian Zhang
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