12-Year-Old Needs Your Help

12-Year-Old Needs Your Help

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Story Published: Oct 19, 2008 at 6:45 PM PDT

By Sade Malloy

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Grandview -- A local mom trying to save her 12-year-old daughter and she's asking for your help. Josie Wacenske is suffering from a rare disease. A bone marrow donor looks like her only option.

Just one quick swab of the cheek and five minutes of your time, that's all Josie and her Mom Thelma are asking for.

Thelma Romero, Josie's Mom says, "She's highly medicated on medication at higher levels so she's actually responding to that but in the long term they only give you so many months, it starts damaging your organs."

See even though Josie looks like your normal 12-year-old she's actually very sick and is suffering from Aplastic Anemia.

A bone marrow disease that stops or slows the production of blood cells and platelets

Josie Wacenske, suffering from Aplastic Anemia says, "I'm excited that a lot of people are trying to help for everybody in the world who really needs help."

Josie needs help right now.

After a long remission Josie's relapsed and now needs a bone marrow donor.

So the family set up shot at the Grandview Market signing up anyone who would help.

Cristina Klatovsky, Inland Northwest Blood Center says, "We saw it yesterday people just coming and saying I'm ready."

Sade Malloy, Action News says, "So far three hours into their Sunday shift 40 people have picked up an application and registered."

Joell Schilperoort, registered to help says, "I'm a preschool teacher I've been doing it for 15 years and if it was any of my students it would just crush me I'd want someone to help them."

Joell is one of the nearly 75 people that registered Sunday with the National Marrow Donor Program to help Josie.

Now only time will tell if one of these swabs is a match.

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