As the new year is setting in, I wanted to give a shout out and advocate to this great cause that has the potential to drastically change someone's life. Be The Match is a US-based organization that supports signing up people for the national bone marrow registry where if you are a match, you could help someone overcome a variety of ailments such as leukemias, lymphomas, aplastic anemia, immune deficiency disorders, and some solid tumor cancers.

Signing up is very easy. You will use the previous link to sign up, they mail you a swab which you will use to swab your mouth, and you mail it back. The information is added to the registry and if you are a match, will receive some communication letting you know of the need. They compensate you for travel and expenses so if you have to miss work, you will still receive money for any lost wages. I know the actual procedure can sound frightening but I can guarantee if you are called upon to donate, that it will be one of the rarest opportunities we get in life to truly assist someone in need. I have personally not gone through the full donation process but was under consideration a couple of years ago as a potential donor. If you don't meet the qualifications to donate, please consider sharing the sign up link with someone who you think may be willing.

I'm not aware of similar organizations in other countries but if you have the knowledge for a specific country, please post in the comments below.