Tracy Murphy, a firefighter dispatcher with Dallas Fire-Rescue for 29 years, quickly saw the need for blood and stem cell donors during her own cancer treatment.
DALLAS — Early Monday morning, two trailers from Carter Blood Care pulled into the Dallas Fire Department Training Center on Dolphin Road. Just outside the parked buses, a tent was pitched with stem cell donor kits from Be The Match.
Over the next five hours, dozens of people showed up to donate blood and swab their cheeks in honor of Tracy Murphy.
Murphy has been with Dallas Fire Rescue for 29 years. She spent 10 years working in the field and the last 19 years in dispatch.
In July before her 60th birthday, Murphy was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. She’s undergoing chemotherapy, but Murphy said her body has been resistant to treatment.
Murphy will eventually need a stem cell transplant.
Murphy’s sister, Paige Graves, helped her run the event since Murphy has a weakened immune system and needs to stay healthy.
Graves, watching her sister go through treatment, sees the need for donors. “They will actually tell us to book appointments in the morning because if you don’t get blood in the morning, we may run out,” said Graves.
Rookies, cadets, active-duty and retired firefighters all showed up for the event. They gathered 57 blood donations for Carter Blood Care and 21 cheek swabs for Be The Match in five hours.
Murphy’s best friend, Kim Rieder, isn’t surprised that Murphy insisted on organizing the blood drive, even with everything she is going through.
Rieder said, “She gives and gives and gives. She’s funny. She’s sweet. She’s smart. She is generous to a fault.”
She said it’s easy to give back to someone who gives so much.
Cancer doesn’t define Murphy. Instead, it gives her reason to selflessly serve.
If you’d like to participate in Murphy’s stem cell donor drive, text TracysMatch4Life to 61474 or click here. A swab kit will be mailed to you.
Be The Match is looking for donors who are 18 to 40 years old.