In 2015, at the age of 25, Joseph was attending a Hanukkah fair at the Hillel Day School in Boca Raton, Fla. when he saw recruiters from Gift of Life asking people to join the stem cell and marrow registry. Intrigued, Joseph approached the table.

“The people there asked if I wanted to swab,” said Joseph. “They seemed nice, and I had heard of Gift of Life before, a few of my friends had already swabbed. I just felt like it was the opportunity to save someone’s life potentially, and that’s worth it. You want to always try and do good things for other people, and this is a way of paying it forward in some way. So, I went over and did it, it was as simple as that. Took less than five minutes.”

It wasn’t until March 2023, though, when Joseph received the call from Gift of Life explaining that he had matched with a five-year-old boy diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia. This was Joseph’s opportunity to save a life.

“I was at home at the time when I received the call,” said Joseph. “I found out I was a match and told my wife and she was very excited for me.”

Joseph wasn’t the first person in his family to be identified as a match for someone in need or to donate, as he soon found out after telling his family.

“My younger sister Rachel, who was living in Israel at the time, was a matched donor, although she couldn’t donate because she was expecting,” said Joseph. “My father’s sister, my paternal aunt, donated bone marrow successfully to a recipient that she still has a relationship with to this day, more than 20 years later!”

A few months later, after additional testing to confirm that he was the best match for his recipient, Joseph came to Gift of Life’s headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla. to donate peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC). While pediatric patients often receive marrow,  PBSC transplants are becoming more common for these young patients. 

“Donating at the Adelson Collection Center was definitely convenient,” said Joseph. “I had a great experience there. I was extremely impressed with the offices and phlebotomists, the rooms, the level of care, and all the staff. Every person I interacted with knew who I was and what I needed. The level of professionalism really stood out. I had people calling me before and after to check on me.”

Joseph’s wife, Adina, accompanied him for his collection, and he even had a special guest visit him during his donation: Gift of Life Marrow Registry Founder and CEO Jay Feinberg!

“Jay was an absolute pleasure,” said Joseph. “He told me his story and how grateful he was for my donation. It was lovely seeing him in the collection center, seeing someone of such seniority talking to us donors.”

After his donation, Joseph feels that the experience has come to have a special meaning for him.

“I think it's hard to go through that experience unchanged,” said Joseph. “I’m a father of three children, my wife gave birth to a healthy baby boy after my donation, and I cannot imagine the anguish that the parents of this five-year-old boy went through to try and save him. It really put things into perspective for me about how fragile life is.”

Joseph urges others to join the registry and donate.

"Gift of Life, in many way, is the last option when nothing else has worked," he said. "To have an institution that finds people willing to donate out of the kindness of their heart is what I think life is about. It's about leaving the world a better place than you found it.  In Judaism, we say ‘If you save a life, you save the world.’ Donating enables you to do the ultimate kindness.”

Joseph, 33, is a commercial and residential mortgage broker living in Boca Raton, Fla. with his wife, Adina, and their three children. He graduated from Middlesex University and served with the Israel Defense Force. In his free time, Joseph enjoys socializing with his friends, going to the beach, and caring for his newborn baby boy.