Bridging the Gap
Education and Awareness is Key ...
The Be A Hero, Become A Donor Foundation's mission is to bridge the gap between organizations that educate and raise awareness to donation of all capacities. While the
Be The Match Registry focuses on
marrow and cord blood donation,
Donate Life is concerned with
organ and tissue donation, and blood companies have the responsibility
of collecting blood products, our goal is to work together and allow us
to provide the four-fold education, allowing these organizations to
focus on donor recruitment, retention, research and funding issues.
The
National Marrow Donor Program used to be affiliated with the
American Red Cross,
but in 2004 these two organizations felt the need to focus on their own
efforts. While these donor groups occasionally work together, we have
made a concerted effort to show these organizations that our part will
only benefit the group as a whole. Ultimately we chose to work side by
side to raise awareness, as it is our belief and our experience that if
someone is donating blood, for instance, they are more willing than the
general public to hear the message of recycling in all capacities. We
also believe that education is the key to bringing "new" donors to
these causes, as well as encouraging blood donors to donate more often.