Man's choice in high school led him to saving boy's life

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Man's choice in high school led him to saving boy's life

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A special reunion at Baldapalooza brought together a young cancer survivor and the man who saved his life by donating bone marrow. VPC

Maggie O'Mara, KTVB-TV, Boise 10:48 a.m. EDT September 4, 2015

Cancer survivor Beckham MacGillivray reunites with Matt DiMario, the bone marrow donor who saved his life.(Photo: KTVB)

MERIDIAN, Idaho - A special reunion at Baldapalooza brought together a young cancer survivor and the man who saved his life by donating bone marrow.

Beckham MacGillivray was diagnosed with a form of blood cancer three years ago. The only way to treat the cancer was with a bone marrow transplant. Beckham's family, and even friends, volunteered to donate.

Unfortunately, no one was a match.

“He saved my son's life and no words can describe what he means to our family.”

That's when the family turned to Be the Match - a national volunteer registry of bone marrow donors. The chances were slim, but they got some incredible news.

"We ended up finding a donor that was almost the perfect match for my son," said Beckham's mom, Bree MacGillivray."Once we found him and he agreed to do it, we flew to Cincinnati and we lived there for seven months and he had his bone marrow transplant."

That perfect match was Matt DiMario, of Boston. He signed up for the Be the Match registry in high school, never thinking he'd actually get a call.

"It was never a question of if I should do this or not," Matt said. "It was more of when can I do this?"

The transplant was a success. Beckham's family was so grateful, they wanted to meet their hero. About a year after the transplant they got in touch with Matt.

"I am just so glad they wanted to reach out to me," he said. "I wanted to reach out to them."

They met for the first time in Boise last year.

"It was pretty incredible," said Bree. "It was pretty emotional, a lot of tears were shed."

"That's kind of when it set in, the impact I've had on someone's life," said Matt. "To them, it was such a miracle almost... it was really humbling to hear what my impact was on them."

Now Matt is a part of the family. Beckham knows how special he is, and what he did for him.

"We've told him he's like his big brother and he helped saved his life," said Bree. "They've become an inseparable bond and they are super close now."

Baldapalooza - a concert honoring kids who have fought, and are fighting, cancer - was the perfect place for their annual reunion this year.

Thanks to Matt's donation, Beckham's story has a happy ending.

"Without him donating, I hate to say this, but I don't know if my son would have survived, so really he saved my son's life and no words can describe what he means to our family," said Bree. "We'll forever be indebted to him."

If you are interested in learning more about Be The Match, check out the group's website or Facebook page.

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