In a heartwarming surprise, Captain David Whitson met and hugged the woman who once saved his life eight years back. David was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in 2016 and, the doctors said, given 5% chances to make it. Allie Reimold, a near match, saved his life from the bone marrow transplant.
At the time, Allie was 22 years old, a college student and a participant in the National Marrow Donor Programme, and she had already consented to donate her stem cells. Her stem cell donation replaced David’s diseased blood with healthy cells, giving him another chance at life.
They were brought together in 2018. Since then, David and Allie have maintained communication through social media and regular annual reunions. As a way of paying them back, David granted his airline travel privileges to Allie, making her feel like family while traveling.
It was last week that David had just arrived in Houston when he found out Allie was on the same Flight 2223, where Allie would board shortly. He coordinated with the crew and rushed to the gate to surprise her. Once on board, he spoke over the PA system of their inspiring story, calling Allie “the true hero of this story.” He then walked up to her and gave her a warm hug, which was applauded by the passengers. It’s not every day you can hug someone who saved your life, David said to CNN. For Allie, now a cancer prevention researcher, the reunion was especially meaningful since it occurred just days before the eighth anniversary of David’s transplant.
