Mountain View senior finishes second in state oratorical contest Hopeful update for child in need of bone marrow transplant

Apotential donor match has been found on an international registry for a 5-year-old Stafford girl in need of a bone marrow transplant.

Elliott Domaleski’s family and friends, with the help of Be the Match Registry, held a series of donor drives for her over the winter, hoping to find a potential match after she was diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia, an aggressive blood disease, in November.

Since then, Nora Domaleski, her mother, said a potential match was ultimately found. No new local drives are scheduled after the latest news, she said, but they’re taking a wait-and-see approach because a slight improvement has recently been noticed in Elliott’s test results.

A transplant may not be necessary, depending on how she responds to current medical treatment, but for now, Elliott is scheduled for a transplant this spring, her mother said.

Initially, no matches were identified for Elliott in the Be the Match Registry, a system that works to more easily find matches for patients in need. Then later, the international match was discovered.

On March 8, Elliott’s Cub Scout troop and local members of law enforcement and fire and rescue departments threw a dinosaur parade of vehicles for Elliott, who adores dinosaurs. During the event, people dressed as dinosaurs or just waved from their vehicles as they drove past her home.

Her mother said Elliott “absolutely loved it.”

According to a GoFundMe set up to cover medical expenses insurance does not, Elliott has been unable to attend school or Cub Scouts in several months.

Severe aplastic anemia results when a person’s body stops producing blood cells. That results in potential infections, anemia, bleeding and other issues. Elliott has had to endure frequent hospital visits and medical appointments, medications and blood transfusions.

In addition, her household and nearby grandparents have had to quarantine to limit the chance that she will develop infections or be exposed to viral infections that could be deadly for her.

– Tracy Bell

For updates or to contribute, visit gofundme.com/f/help-elliott-fight-aplastic-anemia

Mountain View High School senior John Hatzis, who won an American Legion Post 290 oratorical contest and a district competition over the winter, moved on to prevail in the Northern region and then finished second in the state last month.

“It was a very close contest,” Erin Fox, chair for the local and district competitions, said of the state event, held in Portsmouth.

The American Legion’s oratorical contests, geared toward high school students, seeks to develop a deeper knowledge of the U.S. Constitution. Contestants also develop leadership, public-speaking and think-on-your-feet skills along the way.

Hatzis earned $1,400 in scholarship money from the American Legion for winning the local and district competitions, as well as additional scholarship money for winning the Northern region.

Along with an eight- to 10-minute prepared speech, Hatzis faced a three- to five-minute assigned topic speech on the first section of the 14th Amendment. He has been weighing numerous college and scholarship offers and plans to study liberal arts with a focus on law and policy.

American Legion Post 290 will hold its Family Day on Saturday, April 29. The public is invited to visit for food, fun and information on the post's activities and youth programs. For more information, visit staffordpost290.org.

– Tracy Bell