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Autograph Party Scheduled to Raise Funds for Charity
Money will subsidize bone marrow testing costs.
October 19, 1998
The Sun Angel Foundation, United Blood Services and the Joe Cajic Foundation will host an autograph party on Tuesday, October 27, 1998, at Karsten Golf Course to raise funds to subsidize bone marrow testing costs.
Former Sun Devils and current Arizona Cardinals' Jake Plummer, Pat Tillman and Mario Bates will join Cardinals' teammate Frank Sanders, former ASU head coach Frank Kush and 1987 Rose Bowl quarterback Jeff Van Raaphorst as the celebrities at the event, which will begin at 5 p.m. and last until approximately 7 p.m. Cost for all six celebrity autographs is $20 and all funds raised will be donated to the Joe Cajic Foundation.
Cajic (prounced Chiech), an offensive lineman at ASU from 1993-94, was diagnosed with leukemia in December 1997 and given four years to live without a bone marrow transplant. The Joe Cajic Foundation was formed to find a life-saving marrow donor for Cajic through developing, fostering and promoting the National Marrow Donor Pool. These efforts will not only help Cajic, but the over 3,000 people who search the National Marrow Donor Program registery each day.
The cost of a bone marrow test, a blood test that determines your bone marrow tissue type, is $40. The autograph party's funds will specifically be used to provide free testing opportunities.
Each year, more than 16,000 new patients are diagnosed with leukemia, aplastic anemia or any number of other life-threatening blood diseases. For many, their only chance for survival is a marrow transplant. The National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) facilitates unrelated marrow transplants for patients with life-threatening blood diseases by recruiting donors, maintaining a Registry of more than 3 million volunteer donors and more. After a volunteer donates two vials of blood, it is genetically typed and entered into the NMDP registry. If a patient's genetic type is identical to that of a volunteer, their life can be saved through a bone marrow transplant.
Cajic started five games over the course of his two-year Sun Devil career, which began in 1993 after he transferred from USC. A 1990 graduate of Shadow Mountain High School in Phoenix, he was a SuperPrep All-American in football at Shadow Mountain. In high school, he earned seven letters, four in track & field and three in football. He was a two-time Arizona 5A discus champion. Plummer, Tillman and Bates were all teammates of Cajic's at Arizona State.
A bone marrow tissue match for Cajic has not been found in his family and his only chance for survival is to find a match through the NMDP. To that end, the Joe Cajic Foundation's efforts to expand the NMDP registery may save his life or the life of someone else in need of a bone marrow transplant. Those who can't attend the autograph party, but would like to make a donation to The Joe Cajic Foundation can call the Sun Angel Foundation at 279-3585.