Safeway Kahului Hosts Student-Run Bone Marrow Drive

Safeway Kahului. File photo by Wendy Osher.

By Wendy Osher

Safeway Kahului will host a student-run bone marrow drive to register potential donors and increase awareness of the need for transplants across the state.

The drive will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. this Saturday, January 21, and is open to anyone between the ages of 18 and 60.

The event was organized by Maui High School student Gabrielle Berce as part of her senior project.  Berce, who hopes to one day be a health care professional, organized the drive with the help of Safeway pharmacist, Patricia Bergau and the Hawaii Bone Marrow Donor Registry.

Bergau became a project mentor for Berce following a tour of the store by the Maui High school chapter of Health Occupations Students of America.

Prospective donors during the Saturday drive will be asked to allow a swab on the inside of their cheek to be taken for a DNA sample.