Footprints x Gift of Life

By Charlie Newstreet

Charlie Newstreet is a Senior majoring in Health Science. He joined Footprints in Fall 2022.

I joined the Footprints: Buddy and Support Program in Fall 2022, and each semester since, we have partnered with the Gift of Life Marrow Registry. Gift of Life is an amazing organization with a mission to “cure blood cancer through cellular therapy.” Gift of Life builds its registry by hosting swabbing events, especially on college campuses across the country. Here at the University of Florida, Footprints teams up with Gift of Life every fall and spring semester to hold swabbing drives, helping more people join the registry and potentially "match" with someone in need of a life-saving bone marrow or stem cell transplant.

Each time we table with Gift of Life, I am reminded of the incredible passion Footprints members have for helping others, both in the immediate Gainesville community and beyond. At these events, members do whatever it takes to add people to the registry - calling their friends, recruiting students walking by, and doing whatever it takes to get more people swabbed and added to the registry. It is so inspiring to see the genuine care they have not just for patients at our local Shands Hospital, but for people all over the world.

These events are also such a fun way to connect with other Footprints members, especially those I don’t get to see often. I’ve loved these experiences so much that I even joined Gift of Life as a campus ambassador! Still, the Footprints x Gift of Life tabling events will always be my favorite.