Being selfless can mean different things to different people. Parents are often described as selfless when it comes to loving their children or giving them all they need in order to succeed in life.
But what do you call someone who has given so much of themselves to others?
Jox is a 43 year old teacher, father and husband – and the ultimate altruist. In 2008, he donated blood-forming stem cells to help a searching patient in desperate need of a bone marrow transplant. But his selflessness didn’t stop there. Jox went on to donate a kidney to his mother in law whose kidneys began to fail after her battle with cancer, he cut off 10 inches of his hair for Locks of Love (yes, he had a “sick mullet”), and Jox has donated more than 11 gallons of blood to Memorial Blood Centers. Generosity is at the core of who he is.
Jox joined the Be The Match Registry during his college days, when a nurse brought it up during one of his blood donations.
Fast forward to 2008 when he got a call that he was a potential match to a searching patient. Jox said he didn’t know a lot about the individual – only their age, gender and diagnosis. But he never once hesitated to commit. He donated bone marrow that same year, and said that the collection hurt less than raking the yard.
He recently reflected on the process; “It’s bigger than just the patient. My donation is extending someone’s life, and that not only effects the life of the patient but it also impacts the lives of their family and friends.”
Jox wants others to be inspired to sign up to the Be The Match Registry. When asked what he would say to other people considering joining the registry, he replied, “Do it yesterday. Put yourself in the situation where you need something and you’re out of options, but there are people who have exactly what you need to live. By donating, the person you are helping gets more time on earth to live.”
