On Giving Tuesday, a Yale student finally got a chance to meet the man she donated life to this year.
Sarah Jordan is used to handing out winning goals on the soccer field, but now the Yale player met the man she gave life to. The emotional reunion was a year in the making and had to be virtual due to COVID-19.
Jordan donated lifesaving stem cells to Mike Silberstein, a 52-year-old father from California battling an aggressive form of leukemia. Jordan says from the day she donated, she knew she wanted to meet her match.
"Thank you for the gift of life," Silberstein says. "I didn't know how I was going to react, and I froze."
Jordan actually made the donation a year ago, but she always knew she wanted to meet her match.
"Meeting Michael and his family was just a surreal moment. It was really cool to finally see the person, the family and the community that I helped out," she says.
Their reunion was made possible by the Be The Match Foundation, which takes monetary donations too.
"Imagine if we all just gave a little bit, $1, $5, $10 - maybe the cost of your morning coffee. Every little bit helps," says Jordyn Kolar, of the Be The Match Foundation.
It was actually sports that led Sarah Jordan to donate in the first place. She signed up after a Yale hockey player died of leukemia.
Thankfully, Mike Silberstein's prognosis is good. He wants to attend Sarah Jordan's graduation in May.
For Jordan, it's a new family.
"To really finally see the person - see his family, see his daughter, all of that," says Jordan.
For more information on how to donate stem cells,
click here.