Ian Peterson worked four jobs on top of his commitments as president of the a capella group Grains of Time and, of course, being a student at N. C. State. Ian’s friends and family are making efforts to see that his work ethic lives on.
Peterson’s mother, along with Be The Match Registry, Campus Enterprises and Shelten Media, partnered to raise awareness and get students to sign up for the Bone Marrow Registration Drive in the Brickyard Monday.
Cindy Peterson said she wanted the drive to take place because her son would have wanted it. Many students were quick to help.
“My son was an activator. He wasn’t a sit-around-on-his-butt kind of kid.” Cindy Peterson said. “He would be so upset if we didn’t take the momentum from his life and move it forward.”
Many students who knew about Ian’s battle with leukemia said his struggle pushed them to sign up to become bone marrow donors. Grains of Time members Brooks Jordan, a freshman in genetics, and Justin Maceney, a freshman in engineering, were among them.
“It really touched home for us because it is a personal matter now,” Jordan said. “He was our brother and our family.”
Betsie Letterle, a member of bone-marrow donation service Be The Match Registry, said she hopes the death of Ian Peterson will bring to light the need of bone marrow donors.
“I think with Ian passing, it certainly raised awareness with the students that had no knowledge of [bone marrow donation],” Letterle said. “It’s a great way for them to engage and take the next step in honoring him and help other patients.”
Elizabeth Wayne, a senior in human biology, went to high school with Ian. She said she is happy to have the opportunity to save someone’s life.
“I would be excited that I would be able to help someone,” Wayne said. “I would want someone to do that for me or someone that I cared about.”
There are many misconceptions associated with donor registration, Letterle said.
“Most people are afraid of it because they have seen television shows or movies that portray donation as painful, when in essence it truly isn’t,” Letterle said.
Jordan said he was apprehensive, but he knew it would pay off.
“I used to think it was a bigger deal, but apparently it’s gotten [less painful] so that they can take it from stem cells,” Jordan said.
Shelli Dallacqua, president and founder of Shelten Media, Ian Peterson’s employer, said if she had the opportunity to become a bone marrow donor she would.
“If someone had told me that, if you pay $100, you could donate your bone marrow and save Ian, I would have done it immediately,” Dallacqua said.
She is not in the age range to be a donor — between 18 and 44 years old.
The bone marrow registry costs $100, but Letterle raised the money for the drive. Letterle wanted to avoid the cost issue that sometimes pushes people away from registry.
Cindy Peterson mentioned a student at North Carolina Central University that was in need of a bone marrow match.
“We would just love to see another kid’s life saved, so that parents don’t have to go through what we have gone through,” Cindy Peterson said.
Cindy Peterson said she wants her son’s memory to be survived by continued bone-marrow donation awareness and the establishment of a scholarship under his name.
