2 stem cell screenings set in coming weeks

Last week I told you about the stem-cell screening that took place in Orono, in hopes of finding a match for Gregory Sanborn, the deputy chief of the Maine Warden Service, who has cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.

This week I learned that the effort is joining momentum, as two more screening sessions are being held in the coming weeks.

On Friday, a bone marrow and stem cell donor drive will be held in the Unity College gymnasium from noon until 4 pm.

The Conservation Law Enforcement Club and the Maine Warden Service Relief Association are helping to organize the drive. There is no cost to complete the test or join the registry. Call 948-9100 with any questions.

And later in the month, a pair of events will take place in Fryeburg, Sanborn’s hometown.

On Saturday, May 19, a benefit dinner and silent auction will be held at the Fryeburg Academy gym to raise funds for a stem cell donor drive that will take place the next day. Organizers hope to raise $50,000.

On Sunday, May 20, the drive will take place from noon until 4 p.m. Again, no one wanting to be screened as a potential donor will be turned away because they don’t make a financial donation.

Sanborn grew up in Fryeburg and was a 1984 graduate of Fryeburg Academy. His late father, Harold Sanborn, was a longtime teacher and coach at the school, and his mom, Blanche Sanborn, is a retired teacher in the Fryeburg school system.

 

John Holyoke

About John Holyoke

John Holyoke has been enjoying himself in Maine's great outdoors since he was a kid. Today, he's the Outdoors editor for the BDN, a job that allows him to meet up with Maine outdoors enthusiasts in their natural habitat. The stories he gathers provide fodder for his columns, and this blog.