August 10 2011

Florida State University football head coach Jimbo Fisher and his wife, Candi, announced the creation of a new national fund to fuel the quest for a cure for Fanconi anemia on Aug. 5, 2011. Their 6-year-old son Ethan was recently diagnosed with the rare disorder.

The Fishers are making a widespread appeal for people to join the Be The Match Registry^® to determine if they are a match for any of the thousands of people whose lives depend on a marrow transplant.

Money raised through the family’s new campaign, called OnaKwest for a Cure, will support research into Fanconi anemia at the University of Minnesota. Researcher Margaret MacMillan, M.D., a pediatric blood and marrow transplant physician at the University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital, said the fundraising efforts planned by the Fishers could be “a game changer” in the fight against Fanconi anemia.

The campaign will raise research dollars for the Kidz 1st Fund, just established by the Fishers, through the sale of T-shirts, wristbands and other products and through online donations. Coach Fisher also will donate all fees associated with his public speaking engagements to the fund.

The NMDP truly values and appreciates Coach Fisher and his wife Candi’s efforts to help recruit more marrow donors to the Be The Match Registry. Their efforts will help many patients into the future.

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