MAXWELL, Iowa — At just one year old, Weston Robinett’s grandmother, Chris Robinett of Maxwell can already find some of his early passions.  “He`s very precocious, he is energetic and a little dog loving fellow,” she said.  There’s one thing his parents, Shane and Emily Robinett, who live in Missouri, and the rest of Weston’s family wish doctors could quit finding.  “Weston was diagnosed with AML leukemia, a rare form of leukemia.  Only 500 kids a year get this particular kind of leukemia,” said Chris.

The diagnosis came in January.  Weston’s mother was a 50% match for a bone marrow transplant but after the procedure, it failed.  Chris said, “After several rounds of chemo his leukemia has come back along with this tumor behind his eye.”

Now Weston’s Warriors are in need of the perfect stranger as a match.  “You don’t have to be a relative, just a cheek swab,” said Chris.  From 2pm-8pm on Friday September 7, inside the Maxwell Community Center, they hope anyone from ages 18-44 will take the ten minutes needed for that swab and perhaps be Weston’s match.  “Bone marrow helps treat or cure seventy different types of blood diseases,” said Chris.

According to Be the Match, one in five-hundred people go on to be the best match to save a patient like Weston.  “Without this bone marrow transplant, yeah it`s dire,” Chris said.  “He was matched with three donors back in April or May and they reached out to the donors and for one reason or another declined,” said Chris.

Once matched the transplant process requires twenty to thirty hours of a donor’s time spread out over a six-week period.  “We hope to find a match for our child but it might help somebody else.  Every child deserves a chance,” said Chris.

If you cannot make it to Maxwell, you can register online at join.bethematch.org/Warriors4Weston and have a cheek swab kit sent to your home.