In an effort to save a local child’s life, organizations at the University of Louisiana at Monroe are sponsoring a Bone Marrow Drive Tuesday, Feb. 6, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the ULM Student Union Building. The community is encouraged to stop by the SUB and get tested, which is simple and only involves a swab of the cheek.

The drive, sponsored by ULM’s Department of Clinical Laboratory Science and the Office of Student Life and Leadership, will benefit James Christopher Allums, son of Chris and Ellen Allums. James Christopher has Fanconi Anemia, a rare and life-threatening disease that causes bone marrow failure.

ULM student organizations will compete among each other to see who can find the most volunteers to be tested Feb. 6. ULM will be competing with Louisiana Tech University and Grambling State University, who will also be holding a Bone Marrow Drive to benefit James Christopher.

James Christopher is a very special child, said his father. At one point, when James Christopher learned that his parents may have found a possible bone marrow match (they didn’t), he immediately told his parents to “give it to someone else who needs it.”

James Christopher’s parents are hoping for 5,000 people to be tested at ULM’s Bone Marrow Drive. If the volunteers aren’t a match for James Christopher, they may be a match for someone else.

For more information, please call Debbie Wisenor, clinical laboratory science, at 342-1637.