Little did Melissa Kingston realize when she swabbed her cheek in a Jerusalem ballroom 14 years ago that she would someday help save a stranger’s life.
The Talmud says, “Whoever saves a single life is considered by scripture to have saved the whole world.” Those words have new meaning for Kingston, who is a Jewish community member and marketing manager at Jewish Family Services (JFS).
Kingston’s story began in January of 2010 as a University of Kansas student on a Birthright Israel trip. In Jerusalem, Kingston was introduced to Gift of Life, a nonprofit organization dedicated to matching stem cell donors with blood cancer patients.
Founded by a Jewish cancer survivor in 1991, the Gift of Life’s registry is shared with hospitals and clinics around the world. Because cellular therapy is an exact science, donors and recipients must match at the DNA level.
“We sat in a hotel ballroom while Gift of Life made the presentation and then were asked to swab our cheeks to register our DNA in a stem cell and bone marrow database,” Kingston said. “Feeling inspired about the stories shared during the presentation, I swabbed and continued the rest of the trip not thinking twice about how that might come up again in my future.”
Years later, Kingston started a family and her career with JFS; the Fairway, Kansas, resident is the proud mother of seven-year-old Savannah. Memories of her Birthright trip came flying back to her one spring day this year when she received a life-changing call.
“It was totally out of the blue. I got a phone call from Gift of Life letting me know I had matched with a potential recipient,” Kingston says.
“I was asked to complete a series of questionnaires, blood tests as well as a physical to determine if I was a true match to the patient in need of a stem cell transfer,” Kingston said. “I felt a little nervous at first about donating until I learned more about the process. The more I knew and understood, the more inspired and excited I became about the opportunity to help save someone’s life.”
In June, Kingston traveled to Boca Raton, Florida, for the donation process. The organization covered all her travel expenses, including those of a travel companion. Kingston chose her close friend and community member Megan Pener, who is the manager of Jewish Experiences and MeltonKC program director at The J.
According to Kingston, the donation process took about four-and-a-half hours to complete.
“I was awake throughout the entire process, felt comfortable, ate lunch and watched a movie,” Kingston says. “I was able to walk on the beach and enjoy a little bit of Florida before I flew home to Kansas City the following day.”
While the donation process is anonymous, Kingston learned her gift was successfully received by a 63-year-old man suffering from acute myelogenous leukemia.
“It was such an honor getting to accompany Melissa on her journey,” Pener said. “Melissa was a total rockstar throughout the entire process. Getting to watch my friend be totally selfless was beautiful. She’s one of my heroes.”
Looking back on this experience, Kingston said it was a “bashert” moment (Yiddish for destiny) in her life.
“I’m so grateful that I was given the chance to make such a difference in someone’s life and that I was able to give back in that way,” she said. “In some cases, the recipients need an additional stem cell transfer six months to a year after their initial transplant. If that is the case for my recipient, I would give again in a heartbeat.”
More information on how to become part of the Gift of Life Marrow Registry is available at giftoflife.org/swab.
