Jurgens is a sergeant with the 32nd Medical Logistics Battalion at Fort Bragg, which oversaw the Operation Life Gift effort in an Army tent off Village Drive. The drive, which organizers said was the largest of its kind in the continental United States, wanted 10,000 donors. More than 9,000 were members of the Army, the Air Force and military dependents, according to Red Cross spokeswoman Jennifer Dwyer. The effort was organized by a committee from the civilian and military communities. Donors gave blood samples at 10 sites throughout Fayetteville, Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base during the past week.
Bone marrow is found in the cavities of the body's bones.
It produces the body's blood components, including red blood cells, platelets and white blood cells, the main agents of the body's immune system. The Red Cross estimates that 30,000 American children and adults are stricken each year from fatal blood diseases, including several types of leukemia. But nearly 70 percent of those who are stricken cannot find a suitable marrow match within their own families, which is why there is a need for a national bone marrow registry. Dave Brown, chairman of the Operation Life Gift planning committee, is general manager of the Saturn of Fayetteville dealership. He has been touched by people he has been around who have leukemia.