Award Honors Teen

Parents Recognized for Efforts on Behalf of NMDP Mission

At its 2001 Council Meeting, the National Marrow Donor Program^® (NMDP) unveiled the Jeffrey Mark Harris Award, an award established in honor of Kansas City teenager Jeffrey Harris who died of leukemia.

The award symbolizes the efforts and continued commitment of Jeffrey's parents and family to the mission of saving lives through marrow and blood stem cell transplantation. The award, a statue of Jeffrey playing hockey in his uniform, will be presented each year to a person who exemplifies the highest level of personal integrity and demonstrates a strong commitment to the NMDP and its mission of saving lives through marrow and blood stem cell transplantation.

In 1985, Jeffrey had leukemia and his only hope for survival was a marrow transplant. Without a match within his family, Jeffrey needed a stranger to help him. During the last few weeks of his life, hundreds of residents from the greater Kansas City area responded to Jeffrey's plight by stepping forward to be tested as potential donors for him. While the effort to save Jeffrey's life was not successful, it became the foundation for what is known today as the Heart of America.

In his memory, Jeffrey's parents, Fred and Sandy, created Heart of America Bone Marrow Donor Registry in April 1985 with the simple goals of finding matches and giving patients second chances by recruiting volunteer marrow and blood stem cell donors. Heart of America became an official Donor Center of the NMDP in 1988. In its role as a Donor Center for the NMDP, Heart of America focuses it efforts on the recruitment, management and care of donors. By 1991, Heart of America had signed up more than 32,000 donors. Today, more than 200,000 donors have joined the NMDP Registry through Heart of America. To date, more than 650 people have given the gift of life by donating marrow and blood stem cells to patients in need through the efforts of Heart of America. Heart of America, headquartered in Kansas City maintains offices in New Orleans, San Francisco, and Memphis.

"It is a very special honor for us to be recognized by the NMDP for a work that was born out of our love for our son. Jeff would be delighted to see the impact his life has had on this program and he would be pleased with this award. Sandy and I have been blessed in our work and with the extraordinary response of so many to this program," Fred Harris said.

The first recipient of the Jeffrey Mark Harris Award is Fran McDermott, manager of western operations for the Heart of America in San Francisco. Recently, the NMDP presented Fred and Sandy with the first copy of the Jeffrey Mark Harris Award statue in recognition of Jeffrey and their continued support of the NMDP. As a champion of marrow and blood stem cell donation and transplantation, Heart of America continues to play an active role in saving lives through its commitment, understanding and appreciation of donors, patients, life and making a difference.

Created in 1986, the Minneapolis-based NMDP facilitates unrelated marrow and blood stem cell transplants for the treatment of leukemia and more than 70 other diseases through an extensive network of national and international partners. By recruiting committed donors, maintaining the largest and most diverse Registry of potential volunteer donors in the world and offering patient services, at least 140 patients receive stem cell transplants through the NMDP each month. The NMDP's Registry contains more than 4.5 million volunteers and is the only one that searches all three sources of stem cells available: marrow, peripheral blood and umbilical cord blood. As of Sept. 30, 2001, the NMDP has facilitated more than 13,000 transplants throughout the world.

For more information about the NMDP, how to become a donor or information about marrow and blood stem cell transplantation, call (800) MARROW-2.