Tim Boxer: Life Savers Meet Life Survivors

by Tim Boxer
Special to the Jewish Week

At the annual dinner of the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Foundation, founder Jay Feinberg brings out several transplant survivors onstage to meet their donors for the first time. It's always a tear-inducing segment of the evening, and the recent episode at the Marriott Marquis did not disappoint.

There were boxes of tissue on every table for guests overcome with emotion.

Jacques Blinbaum of New York said he was given the opportunity to donate bone marrow two years ago after talking about it for years." His recipient, Yvonne Hatherill of Los Angeles, who was diagnosed with leukemia, thanked him in person for the first time.

"Your gift touches me every day," she said.

Ken Strauss also got a transplant two years and met his donor for the first time at the dinner. His donor, Avi Karesh of Riverdale, said, "I stayed extra healthy for three months for you. That meant being extra careful crossing New York streets."

Mel Cohen said he got "a second chance for life" with a transplant from Matt Rubinberg. "A little piece of me has gone a long way," Rubinberg responded.

Read more by Tim Boxer at www.15MinutesMagazine.com.

Westchester Jewish Conference

Westchester’s Jewish Community Relations Organization