We talk to Pippa, President of the Loughborough Marrow Society, a society which works alongside Anthony Nolan to sign people up to the stem cell donor register. They’re also the society who helped break records as part of the University’s Spit Happens event earlier this year.

What is your society all about?

Marrow is about helping others. We work in association with Anthony Nolan to save the lives of people with blood cancer by adding wonderful people onto the stem cell register. Our main aim is to recruit young people aged 16-30 that are willing to donate their stem cells to those with leukemia. We also raise money for the ongoing research being done and raise awareness of the disease.

What sort of events are put on by the society?

We do lots of fundraising and donor recruitment events around campus. We’re also aiming to put on lots of socials for our volunteers to add a different aspect to our society. For this year’s fundraising we are planning to do bake sales, the RAG colour run and possibly some RAG raids.

Why, when and how did you join?

I first started volunteering with Marrow a year ago. I instantly fell in love with what the society does and the feeling of pride you get from helping others. I quickly went on to become the donor recruitment coordinator and played a part in running the campus-wide Spit Happens event earlier this year. Since then I have become more and more involved, now acting as the current President.

Best or most memorable moments from your time in the society?

Spit Happens! This was our campus-wide event where we broke the record for the number of sign ups on one day. We set up stations around the university and added over 2000 more incredible life savers to the Anthony Nolan register. This was an amazing achievement and I was incredibly proud to be part of such a life changing event.

Describe your society in three words…

Charitable, Proactive and Inclusive.

What would you say to someone considering joining?

Marrow is a great way to give back to the community. Doing something as simple as swabbing the inside of your mouth could save someones life.

Anything else we should know?

Marrow works in association with Anthony Nolan, meaning as a society we are always supported and rewarded for the things we do.

Interested in finding out more? Contact the Marrow Society via their social media channels: Facebook, Twitter.

LSU has a huge range of societies – you can find the list of all 115+ societies here.

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