Isabelle Evans, Be The Match fundraiser and bone marrow donor
While people discover our mission at all stages in life, Isabelle’s introduction came early—and close to home.
She first learned about the blood stem cell transplant journey as a young girl. There were two children on her street with pediatric cancers, and one received a transplant from his sister.
She continued to hear more about Be The Match ® during high school—then just before her 18th birthday, Isabelle had a cousin who received a blood stem cell transplant from a selfless stranger. As soon as she turned 18, she proudly joined the Be The Match Registry® to provide hope to more patients.
Isabelle’s ties to the mission continued to deepen during college. Many of her friends joined the registry after representatives for the organization visited campus.
Her time to shine and help someone
More than six years after joining the registry, Isabelle received a voicemail and an email from Be The Match that she was a potential match for a patient. Feeling both surprised and excited, she made the commitment to say yes. She was all in to help this patient no matter what they needed.
This summer Isabelle became one of the 10% of donors who are asked to donate via bone marrow and says the process went smoothly. She says she was impressed by how coordinated and well managed the whole process ended up being. Isabelle credits a whole network of people from Be The Match who were there throughout the donation journey, supporting her and answering any questions along the way. Her boyfriend, Sam, was her official caregiver and helped immensely throughout the process, too.
Isabelle feels very grateful for the opportunity to have helped someone in need. She regards donating as “one of the happiest experiences of my life.”
Raising funds for those in crisis
Isabelle says she never realized how much financial support Be The Match provides to both donors and patients throughout the process. She talked through all of this with her loved ones and decided to use her bone marrow donation as an opportunity to also donate to the organization financially—through the power of fundraising.
When Isabelle began her fundraiser, her initial goal was $5,000. She not only met that goal—she more than doubled it to $11,000 in just 10 days! And it’s all thanks to the generous support of her friends and family.
Isabelle says she feels fortunate to have a stable job and finances—and is aware that not every donor, or patient, has this privilege. “Not everyone might be able to afford the logistics,” says Isabelle. “Be The Match is so great in covering everything for the donor."
She hopes that the funds she raised will help Be The Match continue to financially support more donors and patients through the life-saving opportunity of blood stem cell transplants. She also hopes her fundraiser boosts awareness, advocacy and interest in the mission: “All of this is just as important.”
You can support patients and donors, just like Isabelle. We invite you to learn more about creating your own fundraiser to support the life-saving mission. It’s easy to get started.