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A schoolgirl and her family have been left ‘overcome with emotion’, after the woman who saved her life flew to Edinburgh to meet her.
Ava Todd, 12, was diagnosed with inherited bone marrow failure when she was just three-years-old. The Daily Record shared a worldwide appeal, prompting more than 83,000 people join the stem cell register.
Juleena Master, from Oklahoma, was the person who donated stem cells to save the youngster back in 2016. Now, almost a decade on, the 47-year-old flew to Scotland so she could meet the family.
Ava, from Lochgelly in Fife, alongside her mum Marie and dad Max, were overjoyed to meet Juleena, her partner Seth and the couple’s son Deacon, after they flew from the US to Scotland to visit her. The two families met up in Edinburgh last Friday before getting together again in London on Monday.
Mum, Marie, 42, told the Record: “When Juleena asked to meet up, I said ‘whatever we’re doing, we’ll cancel it and be free’.
“We have replayed this moment in our heads a million times, but in reality it was so much more special. Ava was very quiet and shy at first, not her usual self, but she was obviously overwhelmed because she suddenly burst into tears.
“We were sobbing and crying and just thanking Juleena over and over. It was so strange because we’ve been communicating online for years, then the woman who save Ava was just standing right in front of us. It was quite breathtaking.
“It was surreal and a full circle moment for sure.”
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Ava had been relying on blood and platelet transfusions to stay alive while waiting for a bone marrow transplant. The donation from heroic Juleena came after two other donors were forced to pull out at the last minute.
Little warrior Ava went on to undergo the operation seven months after her diagnoses, following rounds of gruelling chemotherapy to help to prevent her body from rejecting her donor’s cells. The ordeal left her immune system compromised – but saved her life.
At the time, mum Marie put together a scrapbook containing the Daily Record’s coverage of Ava’s brave battle in its newspapers and sent it to Juleena’s address in the US by recorded delivery to thank her. But she soon received notice that there had been a problem with the delivery, prompting mum-of-two Marie to trace Juleena on Facebook instead.
She said: “We weren’t sure if we’d ever get to meet her in person.
“But now we have spend valuable time with them. Ava wanted to show Juleena the places she loves in Edinburgh, which meant an Italian at Amarone, Crazy Golf at Boom Bar and Frankeinsteins pub.
“Then we also went to London to meet up with them on another part of their trip so we could spend more time making memories. We climbed the 02 Arena and visited the London Eye.
“It has been so amazing to see Ava and Juleena living life together, because one of them saved the other. Those are memories that will stay with us forever.”
Marie said Ava has gone from strength to strength since her transplant and has a “massive zest for life”. She enjoys dancing, going on adventures and participating in adrenaline-inducing activities.
The courageous youngster is due to start high school next week. Marie added: “Ava is so full of energy and life.
“She loves dancing and is a total daredevil who loves roller coasters and activities like visiting Go Ape. We’ve even booked tickets to go on the Alpine Coaster in Edinburgh in three weeks’ time.
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“From the moment she gets up – to the moment she goes to bed – she’s always on the go and has so many questions. She’s has a massive zest for life and is looking forward to starting high school.”
Marie is urging anyone who can to join the stem cell register to help save the lives of those in need. She continued: “At one point, we weren’t sure if we’d get Ava to this stage in her life.
“Our story just shows you the importance of joining the register. I think a lot of people are put off by thinking they will have to undergo an old fashioned, uncomfortable bone marrow retrieval – but it’s not like that anymore. It’s just like giving blood.
“We would always encourage people to sign up. It costs nothing but you could save a child’s life. We will be forever be grateful to Juleena for doing that for us.”
