"We never give ourselves enough credit.

Too many of us think that becoming some kind of donor isn't worth the effort.

Don't tell Leonard Begaii that, because he knows from first-hand experience that's not true.

Begaii's son, Xavier, experienced a rare chromosomal problem.

The help and outpouring of kindness his son and family received during his son's illness drove him to find a way to say thank you.

His way of giving back was a donation to the National Marrow Donor Program.

Created in 1987 the organization's "Be The Match Registry" has grown to more than 7 million donors. The largest and most racially and ethnically diverse registry of its kind in the world.

Only 30 percent of patients will find a donor within their family. Others have to rely on the kindness of a stranger.

By contrast, patients needing bone marrow transplants have a 60 to 88 percent chance of finding a donor in the general public.

Because of Begaii's donation, Alex Cesar, a young boy with leukemia from Juneau, Alaska, is alive today."

Get the Story:
Editorial: Donor's selfless act should inspire others (The Farmington Daily Times 8/16)

Earlier Story:
Navajo man's bone marrow donation saves boy's life (The Farmington Daily Times 7/2)