Whereas, The Bone Marrow Wish Organization is a minority-run, Detroit based, non-profit, with a mission “to save lives by increasing the diversity of the bone marrow and stem cell pool”; and,

Whereas, The Bone Marrow Wish Organization targets the most under-represented groups documented on the 2005 National Marrow Donor Program registry:  Hispanic Americans, 9 percent, African Americans, 8 percent, Asian American, 7 percent, and Native Americans, 1 percent, by educating and recruiting members from there groups at places they frequent most; and,

Whereas, Going into it’s third year, the Bone Marrow Wish Organization has educated and registered more than 1,000 potential donors through monthly bone marrow drives held at churches, family reunions, ethnic festivals, health fairs, and places of work in Southeastern Michigan; and now therefore be it,

Resolved, That I, Jennifer M. Granholm, Governor of the State of Michigan, do hereby proclaim June 3, 2006, as African American Bone Marrow Awareness Day.