Middlebury Seeks Bone Marrow Match For Community Member With Annual Drive on May 6

5/4/2026 12:30:00 PM

The Whitcomb family, featuring three Middlebury College graduates.

Middlebury Athletics will host its annual “Get in the Game” Drive to recruit people to join the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) registry on Wednesday, May 6. The event will run from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on the McCullough Student Center Patio, weather permitting, with the Axinn Center as an alternate location. Anyone who is aged 18-35 is eligible to join the registry.

The football team brought the event to campus four years ago, and the College has averaged one match per year since then. The field hockey and nordic ski teams will assist football with putting on the event.

The Everson family backpacking in the Frank Church Wildnerness.

L to R: Uncle Jake Whitcomb '06, Charlie, Uncle Matt Whitcomb '01 and brother, Bennett.

This year’s drive targets a match for eight-year-old Charlie Everson, the daughter of Blake and Kate Whitcomb Everson '04, who reside in Hailey, Idaho. Kate was a four-year member of the Nordic skiing team and majored in Studio Art with a minor in Elementary Education at Middlebury. Brothers Matt Whitcomb ‘01 and Jake Whitcomb ‘06 also competed on the nordic skiing team.

Charlie pictured reading with the family cat.

Charlie pictured with a friendly frog.

Charlie loves dressing in wild outfits and getting them good and dirty. She would love to be a veterinarian, a princess, and a mom someday, but first, we need to find her a new immune system.

- Kate Whitcomb Everson '04

Charlie was officially diagnosed at age four with stati gain-of-function, a genetic disorder in which immune cells are over-activated, according to the Immune Deficiency Foundation. Fewer than 500 cases have been documented worldwide.

A five-minute survey and a 20-second cheek swab are all it takes to check for a potential match. With a transplant, Charlie could live a full, healthy life.

I have been humbled by the number of people who have rallied to help. This is quite literally a thing that I cannot do alone. A mother’s nightmare. I can’t save her, but there might be a student at Middlebury right now that can.

- Kate Whitcomb Everson '04

Since the initial drive in 2022, the football program has seen nearly 1,000 registrants and has averaged one match per year. Most recently, Liam High ‘25 became the fourth Panther to donate through NMDP. For more information about the NMDP, click here.