Belmont High Armenian Club Raises Funds for Leukemia

On Sat., Sept. 28, the Belmont High School (BHS) Armenian Club participated in the 2^nd Annual New England “Walk of Life” for the Armenian Bone Marrow Donor Registry (ABMDR), walking to raise funds and help raise awareness for leukemia and its potential cure.

Top row: Adelaida Balagyozyan, Talene Sagherian (co-president), Katarena Nalbandian, Diana Krmzian, Meg Babikian, Natalie Ourfalian, and Nairi Krafian (co-president). Bottom Row: Nicole Keikian, Meghri DerVartanian, Ani Hackett, Daron Hamparian, and Vrej Ashjian

The co-presidents of the BHS Armenian Club, Nairi Krafian and Talene Sagherian, set a goal to raise $300, and surpassed the goal, raising $515; $415 was raised through donations and the club raised $100 from selling snacks and beverages at BHS varsity soccer and field hockey games prior to the walkathon.

Every year thousands of people around the world lose their lives to leukemia and other blood disorders that could potentially be cured by bone marrow transplants. In Armenia, leukemia accounts for 40 percent of all childhood diseases. Due to the unique genetic makeup of Armenians, the chances of an Armenian being a match for another Armenian is much greater, regardless of their birthplace.

The ABMDR is a non-profit organization that aims to save lives by recruiting and providing matched unrelated donors for bone marrow or stem cell transplantation for patients worldwide suffering from leukemia and other life-threatening blood related illnesses. For more information, visit www.abmdr.am. The BHS Armenian Club was proud to be able to participate in their second walkathon and look forward to continuing the tradition in years to come.