Arkansas Tech University alumnus Rahk Lash is giving a teen new hope at life as part of an event that happened at Arkansas Tech.
Lash holds a master’s degree in college student personnel from Arkansas Tech, and he signed up to be part of the bone marrow registry during a Be the Match drive at Tech in April of 2015.
When he received the call, Lash said he was shocked to find out he could be a match to someone.
“I had honestly forgotten I signed up for the registry, and I was pretty surprised I was a match after only being registered for one year,” said Lash. “Some people have been on the registry for years and never end up being matched with a fighter.”
After receiving the calls, Lash took the next steps to help.
“I actually had to travel to Rochester, New York, which is about two hours from my home, on three separate occasions,” said Lash. “The other visits for lab work, drawing blood and testing were coordinated to be local trips in my hometown.”
Lash said working with Be the Match and the hospital was a seamless process.
“Be the Match was very accommodating every step of the way,” said Lash. “The process itself was easy, and you end up sleeping the whole time. The staff at Strong Memorial Hospital were amazing, friendly informative and took great care of me.”
Despite the process, Lash said he never questioned if he would help.
“The second I talked to my Be the Match representative, I was in ‘Go-Mode’ and willing to do whatever it took,” said Lash. “It was the right thing to do, and that was the end of it. I work at Ithaca College, and they supported me and worked with me to help make it happen.”
The hardest part for Lash, is not knowing if the procedure will help.
“There is not a 100% guarantee the procedure will work, and there is a chance it won’t help,” said Lash. “However, that didn’t negate my responsibility to do what I said I would do more than a year ago. When I signed up around 1 a.m. outside of Baz-Tech, I never knew I would have the chance to help. I did, and I hope the 14-year-old boy who received my donation is able to win his battle against leukemia.
