Jake Marion '26, an Elon University football player and nursing student, was highlighted by WSOC in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Elon University football player and nursing student Jake Marion ’26 was recently featured on WSOC in Charlotte, North Carolina for donating bone marrow through the National Marrow Donor Program (formerly Be The Match)
The national nonprofit agency works to spread awareness of the need for bone marrow donation and to increase the number of participants in the bone marrow registry. While Elon Football has worked with the organization for several years, Club Nursing joined in 2024 for an annual awareness and registry event.
Marion joined the registry through Elon Football in 2022. He was almost matched in previous years, but blood testing revealed it was not a high enough match necessary for donation. That all changed this year when he got a call in January to begin the donation process, which was completed this spring.
“He’s a part of me now, and I’m a part of him,” Marion said of the recipient. “My cells are inside his body and hopefully they’re doing their job, and they’re helping him, so it’s hard. I’m just praying he’s going to get better, and I’m rooting for him.”