For 18-year-old leukemia survivor Elijah John, it was a meeting he wasn’t sure would ever happen.
The Brooklyn native and his family gathered at Manhattan’s Pier 57 in Chelsea on a sunny August afternoon Saturday to meet Nicholas Miranda-Newberry – the man who donated his bone marrow to save the teen’s life three years ago.
“He’s a godsend. That’s the best way to say it: Nicholas is a godsend,” said Elijah’s father Karl John, a property manager in Brooklyn.
John was first diagnosed with leukemia in November 2020 at 14 years old after he contracted a toothache that wouldn’t heal. A trip to the dentist ultimately led to a blood cancer diagnosis and a handful of subsequent surgeries, his family told The Post.
“He was always healthy — it wasn’t something he was born with,” John’s father said. “We started to lose hope, to be honest with you.”
“The first four months, the chemo didn’t take,” said John’s mother, Queens pharmacy technician Chawn Tucker. “It was one of the scariest moments that I ever in my life endured. And watching Elijah going through the chemo, losing his hair, and being sick, I just kept praying.”
“I feel like it was just me being stuck in a room for months at a time,” John said of the chemotherapy process. “I didn’t let it affect me, but eventually I started missing my friends. I ghosted the whole world. I didn’t talk to anybody – I didn’t want anybody to feel bad for me.”
According to the family, John’s hair and teeth fell out after their son began chemotherapy – all before Miranda-Newberry was identified as a match and gave John a “second chance at life.”
Miranda-Newberry, 25, a self-described world traveler who lives in Chicago, first signed up to donate bone marrow at age 18 after seeing an ad on social media for DKMS, the storied blood cancer research nonprofit.
He first did a cheek swab, which he mailed to the organization. It was four years later that Miranda-Newberry – who has also been a plasma donor for the last two years – was contacted by DKMS and informed he was a match for John.
“The bone marrow transplant, it was difficult — but I was able to get through the whole process, and I believe [that by] doing that I was able to save a person’s life,” the donor told The Post. “I would honestly do it again.
“I’ve just always been a person who wants to be able to help people like that,” he added.
Shortly before 5 p.m. on Saturday, as John anxiously strode across the rooftop, he caught his first glimpse of the man who saved his life. A huge smile spread across his face and he embraced Miranda-Newburry in a minutes-long hug.
The emotionally-charged moment drew tears from John’s parents — who just a few years ago had feared they might lose their son to blood cancer.
“[It’s] unbelievable,” added Tucker, 51. “There’s no word that I could even put into this moment right now. I didn’t think this day would have happened — I could not wait to meet Nicholas.”
The teen presented Miranda-Newberry with a plaque on Saturday expressing his gratitude, which read in full:
“Nicholas, [taking] a moment to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your incredible generosity in donating your bone marrow to me. Your selfless act has given me a new lease on life and I am beyond grateful. Your kindness and willingness to help a stranger in need is truly inspiring. Because of you, I have a chance to look forward to a healthier future. Thank you for being my hero.”
The meeting comes as John embarks on a new phase in his life — the 18-year-old cancer survivor and aspiring engineer begins college at New York City College of Technology in Brooklyn next week.
Miranda-Newberry is celebrating a new chapter as well, having recently celebrated his six-month wedding anniversary.
Both the John family and Miranda-Newberry said the donor experience has forged a lifelong bond between not only Elijah and Nicholas, but between both families. John’s family now celebrates the anniversary of the bone marrow transplant to mark the Brooklyn teen’s “new birth.”
“Elijah and Nick — it’s a wonderful story but unfortunately, that doesn’t happen that often because not enough people are registered, so moments like this when you can actually see full circle from registration to donation to the actual impact, it’s really inspirational for a lot of people,” said DKMS spokesperson Maya Ward.
An American is diagnosed with a type of blood cancer every three minutes, the spokesperson noted, adding that 70% of people with blood cancers must rely on donors outside their families.
“We hope that [John’s story] motivates more people to just do the free cheek swabs, get registered — because it really can save a life,” Ward added.
Adults over the age of 18 can register to join the donor pool and request a swab kit online through DKMS at dkms.org.
“I wish there was more people out there like Nick [sic],” John’s father added.
“I hope other families have a chance at that. I know a lot of people go through the same thing we’re going through. God bless Nick.”