A family on the verge of losing their toddler meets the woman who saved their child's life
It was Shawen Christenson-Bueckers' first year of college when she was offered the opportunity to save a stranger's life.
Shawen is a registered bone marrow donor for Be The Match, a nonprofit organization that helps patients who need bone marrow transplants. When they matched her with a little girl on their list, she didn't think twice about donating.
"It was just like this overwhelming feeling of, like, I know that I can do this," said Shawen. "Yeah, it might be difficult, but I could really make a difference and change someone else's life."
Watch the video to see a toddler meet the woman who saved her life.
One-year-old Amelia Bellmore was the child in line to receive Shawen's marrow, and naturally, her parents were thrilled! Amelia was only seven months old when she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. Within the first two months of her diagnosis, she went through two rounds of chemotherapy.
"Both failed," says Amelia's mom, Rebecca. "And they were like, okay, bone marrow transplant time. So, it was pretty quick into this journey that we knew she needed a transplant."
Amelia's sister, Lillian, turned out to be a bone marrow match. However, Amelia's doctors recommended that she seek a non-familial donor as a stranger's marrow could prove more effective in her battle with cancer.
So, at two years old, Amelia received Shawen's life-saving bone marrow. The rules of the organization require the identity of the donor and recipient to be kept secret from each other for a year. However, Shawen and the Bellmore family were allowed to exchange anonymous letters.
"I remember like getting the letters from her that she sent anonymously and crying and just opening the letters before I even started reading them," says Amelia's dad, Ryan. "We, like, were just praying that we could meet her someday and that she could be part of Amelia's life."
When the year was finally up, it was time for the big reveal. And Shawen and the Bellmore's decided to meet during a special Be The Match event at Brigham Young University, where Shawen is a student. When they first laid eyes on each other, the moment was magical.
"I'd waited for it for like over a year, and I was just so happy to finally see her. I started crying," said Shawen.
Shawen was able to get to know the Bellmore family and bond with little Amelia. Thanks to Shawen, Amelia is now living her life as a free-spirited toddler, attending preschool, and making friends.
"She's like kind of a little firecracker. She knows what she wants, and she's gonna get it," says Amelia's mom. "She's snuggly and loves normal two-year-old things like dinosaurs."
Shawen encourages everyone who qualifies as a potential bone marrow donor to register because she knows the impact the gift could have on another person.
"It's the easiest 30 seconds of your life," said Shawen. "You literally just swab your cheek, and you never know if they'll call you, but if they do, you have the opportunity to know that you really, truly made a difference in someone else's life."
