CLEVELAND, June 23 — Thirteen years ago, Matt Kronyak’s nephew was battling leukemia. Everyone in his family signed up to become a bone marrow donor, but no one was a match. An outside donor was eventually found, and his nephew is now alive and doing well.
In February, Kronyak, a CSX locomotive engineer with BLET Division 235 in New Jersey, got an unexpected phone call. He had been on the bone marrow registry list all this time and now someone needed him.
“They called me and asked if I’d be a donor for a 43-year-old woman,” Kronyak said. “They said I was a perfect match.”
Registering to become a bone marrow donor had been a relatively simple process. Kronyak simply gave blood and answered some questions. Donating the actual bone marrow, however, was more involved.
Kronyak was asked several hundred questions about his health and given tests to ensure he was in perfect physical condition.
For five days in March, Kronyak was given a shot a day to build up his stem cells. On the first day of the shots, Kronyak had just been elected State Chairman to the New Jersey State Legislative Board. It was a gratifying, yet stressful week.
After the completion of the shots, Kronyak sat at the hospital for eight hours, making a peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation. The procedure was discomforting, but well worth it.
“The woman I donated to sent me a card that said, ‘Thank you for saving my life.’ I figured if it was one of my family members or my wife, I’d want someone to do it,” Kronyak said.
Kronyak doesn’t know who the woman is or where she lives. The patient’s identity will be kept anonymous for one year, to ensure that some time has gone by and she is doing well before Kronyak is able to meet her.
Always Involved
Donating his bone marrow was hardly the first truly selfless act that Kronyak has taken part in.
“Teamsters do a lot of stuff for a lot of people. We are always involved,” Kronyak said.
Last summer, members of Teamsters Joint Council 73 and the BLET in New Jersey made some wishes come true for eight children with terminal cancer. The children came to the New Jersey/New York area from Australia through Challenge, an organization similar to the Make a Wish Foundation in the U.S. Kronyak organized a special “Santa Train in July” excursion through New Jersey, overlooking the New York City skyline, among a number of other activities for the children.
“My mother died of cancer and anything I can do, whether it’s spending time with the kids or donating bone marrow, I’ll do it,” Kronyak said.
Kronyak urges his fellow BLET members and Teamsters to help in their local unions and communities. For those interested in donating bone marrow, potential donors can join a registry through a local hospital or find out more online. Kronyak encourages fellow Teamsters with questions about becoming a bone marrow donor to email him at mcmkronyak@aol.com