How Did a Camp Counselor’s Journey Lead to Saving a Life?

Where It All Began

My story starts in the Fall of 2017. At 18 years old I had many aspirations in life; graduating college, becoming a great nurse, making lifelong memories in school, and lifelong friendships. One thing that I never had on my to-do list was to save a life, but in the spring of 2025 I got the opportunity to do just that. To best tell this story though, I’ll take you back to how it all began.

Finding Purpose Through Service

During my freshman year of college, I joined an amazing organization called Camp Kesem. It is a national organization whose mission is to provide kids impacted by their parents' cancer with a free week of summer camp. I became heavily involved with Camp Kesem, starting as a counselor, then as the operations coordinator one summer, and eventually returning after graduation as a volunteer nurse! I fell in love with the mission of the camp; the population it serves are the most incredible, kind, deserving kids who have already experienced so much pain. I wanted to make it the most magical week of camp for them, to create a place where they could just be kids, without anxiety and fear, even if it was just for a week. Fundraising to ensure the camp would remain free for the campers was the hardest part, but that's where DKMS first came in. Our Camp Kesem chapter partnered with them to register potential stem cell donor on campus in exchange for a financial donation to our mission. I decided to swab, not knowing where it would lead me and the impact it would ultimately one day have on my life and that of a stranger.

One Call Changed It All

As the years went by, I graduated college, started my nursing career, and became an infusion nurse for pediatric oncology and hematology patients. One day in August of 2024, I got a call from DKMS and was asked if I was still interested in being a donor for a patient in need...I was a match! The call obviously came as a surprise, because I had registered as a donor so long ago, but I had no hesitation and was excited to immediately say yes. I went through testing and a physical over the next few weeks and then received a call that I was no longer needed due to the patient’s status. The call left me with conflicting feelings; working in the world of bone marrow transplants, I knew there were so many reasons why I might not be needed. I tried not to be disappointed that my opportunity to save a life was gone and tried to stay optimistic that the patient’s condition improved for other reasons.

The Magic of Giving Back

Jumping forward to March 2025, I was called back to donate and this time I went through the whole journey, start to finish! There were many calls, lab visits, a physical, more lab visits, injections, and finally donation day. All in all, the process was relatively easy and the DKMS team were the best facilitators. The night before my donation felt like being a kid on Christmas eve. Knowing I was about to donate my lifesaving cells, while my match was somewhere else in the country preparing to receive them, was a surreal feeling. I left the donation center crying happy tears, knowing my cells would be on a plane and headed to my match in just a few hours. Having seen firsthand how special that moment is for someone battling cancer made it all the more impactful for me.

The Gift of Helping Others

I have always loved helping others, whether through interactions with strangers, experiences in my career, or volunteering opportunities like Camp Kesem. It has been a joy to be a role-model for my campers, showing them that anything is possible, and I am so excited to share my donation story with them when I go back to camp this summer as a nurse. I know some of their parents battling cancer have been on the receiving end of a stem cell or bone marrow donation, so it is truly incredible that I now have another way to relate to them and understand another part of their story.

It feels like the journey I began back as a freshman all came full circle this year and the reward was immeasurable. The ability to help others is life’s greatest gift, and the opportunity to save a life was an experience I will never forget.