Malmstrom Airman gives gift of life

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman John Parie
  • 341st Space Wing Public Affairs
MALMSTROM AIR FORCE BASE, Mont. (AFPN) --  Although separated by thousands of miles, an Airman here and a special little girl have a common bond.

First Lt. Janelle Rust, a 12th Missile Squadron missile officer, signed up for the Department of Defense Bone Marrow Donor Program while at Officer Training School at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala. This decision would later weave a string of events that would save a young girl’s life.

In July 2003, Lieutenant Rust received a phone call telling her that she was a possible match for a bone marrow recipient. After a number of blood tests she was asked to donate.

Following the notification, Lieutenant Rust flew to Washington, D.C. and donated a pint of bone marrow from her left hip. Then, within 24 hours of her donation there, the bone marrow arrived at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., where a little girl waited for a second chance at life.

Because of a law that prohibits contact for one year following the transfusion, all she knew was that a 3-year-old girl needed help.

Then in August, she received a phone call asking if she would release her personal information to the girl’s family.

“At first I thought about not releasing my information, but I talked to my mom and she talked me into it,” Lieutenant Rust said.

Shortly after faxing back a consent form, Lieutenant Rust was asked if she would like to attend a bone marrow conference in Washington and meet with the family of the girl she helped save.

“I grew nervous the closer the trip got, but I was really excited to go,” she said.

The second day of her stay in Washington, she finally meet Rilee Bjerke, now a perfectly healthy 4 year old.

“It was really hard to maintain (my) composure (at the meeting), everyone in the room was crying,” Lieutenant Rust said. “The meeting changed everything for me.”

“When I first donated the bone marrow, it didn’t seem like that big of a deal; it was a lot like giving blood,” she said. “But after meeting Rilee and her family, you realize that you made a huge impact on their lives.”

Following the transfusion, Rilee made a great recovery and was able to start school this year, Lieutenant Rust said. Before the donation, Rilee was sick all the time and constantly confined to her bed.

“We have plans to stay in contact now,” Lieutenant Rust said. “Her family has school pictures of her on the way to me.”

Lieutenant Rust said she now plans to help coordinate a bone marrow registration drive at Malmstrom to tell people of the importance of bone marrow donations and why it is important for them to sign up.

Of the more than 350,000 people registered in the bone marrow donation program, Lieutenant Rust was one of only three possible matches for Rilee.