UVSA Norcal Urges the Vietnamese American Community to Register as Bone Marrow Donors!
Bao Thien Ngo
May 21, 2008 huy....@norcaluvsa.org
UVSA Norcal
Urges the Vietnamese American Community to Register as Bone Marrow Donors!
San Jose, CA – It is an unfortunate
truth that often times, we are not aware of a problem until it affects
us. However, it is the love of our family and the support of our
friends that carries us through our ordeals.
We find such a story today with an amazing
young woman of Chinese and Vietnamese descent named Michelle Maykin.
She is a 26-year-old graduate of UC Berkeley who is active in the community
and beloved by her family. Michelle has experienced the pain of
learning that she had developed Leukemia and endured many intense sessions
of chemotherapy. The sessions are so physically damaging that
they have caused her to lose her hair, but these treatments are necessary
for her to continue her fight against Leukemia. Yet through these
struggles, Michelle has never failed to smile and to provide a reassuring
word to her many friends and her heartbroken family.
Her life relies on finding a bone marrow
donor who can be a match for her. While it is not a guarantee,
those of Vietnamese and Chinese descent have better odds of being a
match for her. Her doctors have already gone through their current
donor list, none of which qualify for Michelle, so we, the United Vietnamese
Student Associations of Northern California, urge our community to join
the registry and give Michelle a fighting chance.
Being a bone marrow donor is a great
service not just to Michelle, but to everyone. Minority communities,
including the Vietnamese community, are greatly underrepresented as
donors, which means that it would be difficult for anybody in our community
to find a donor should we be in need. Michelle's case is immediate
and needs your help right away, but you should become a donor for yourself
and your family as much as for Michelle.
For more information about Michelle, please visit: www.projectmichelle.com
For more information about becoming a
donor, please visit: www.aadp.org
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UVSA is a non-profit, non-partisan, community-based organization founded in 2002 as a means for youth to organize socially and civically in Northern California. Committed to cultural awareness, educating youth, and community service, UVSA is composed of volunteers—including young professionals, college students, and high school students—to help youth develop a sense of their Vietnamese heritage and identity.