Washington, D.C

Following transformative experience, Palmer woman advocates for donor rights in Washington, D.C.

Published

2 years ago

February 24, 2024

Following transformative experience, Palmer woman advocates for donor rights in Washington, D.C.

PALMER, Alaska (KTUU) – A Palmer woman is heading to the nation’s capitol next week to lobby legislators for donor registration funding and advocate for a bill aimed at protecting bone marrow and blood cell donors’ rights to job security.

Sandra Hinton, an administrator for Knik Charter School in Wasilla, registered as a bone marrow donor sometime in the late 2000s through the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP). She can’t recall exactly what prompted her to register, only that it felt like something she needed to do.

“I got online and looked at it and I thought, ‘Well that’s easy, who wouldn’t want to do this for somebody?’ and so I signed up,” Hinton recalled.

She thought a lot about donating after she first registered, but when her phone didn’t ring for nearly a decade the idea left her mind.

“I actually forgot about it,” Hinton admitted. “And when I actually got the call, text, my phone blew up and I called back and I thought it was a joke.”

But it wasn’t a joke, Hinton was a 100% match with a young Florida man named Jonathan who had been diagnosed with leukemia. She traveled to Kansas City and underwent surgery. She never met Jonathan during this process — to her, he was a perfect stranger.

According to Hinton, donors can reach out to recipients after a one-year waiting period following the donation. After this time, donors can send recipients their contact information but it’s ultimately up to the recipients if they want to respond.

Jonathan responded.

“He came up [to Alaska] with his brother and his mom and dad, and we met in Denali,” Hinton said. “It was beautiful. It was the most amazing day of my life.”

Hinton said the meeting was an emotional one, as she and her husband embraced Jonathan and cried. She felt the same love for Jonathan that she would her own son.

Sandra Hinton and her husband embrace the recipient of her bone marrow donation after meeting for the first time in Denali.(Sandra Hinton (NMDP))

Because of her donation, Jonathan lived for another 18 months. Hinton said her beloved match died after contracting an infection in his port. It was a year and a half that Hinton said Jonathan didn’t take for granted — traveling to Spain to watch his favorite soccer team, ringing in a new year under the Eiffel Tower and visiting Alaska to meet the woman who saved his life.

“He got a lot of life in that 18 months,” Hinton said. “I wish it could be forever. I wish it could.”

Jonathan’s death didn’t take anything away from Hinton’s experience as a donor. She said she would do it again in a heartbeat if asked.

Since the donation Hinton has become an advocacy volunteer for NMDP, running drives locally to drum up donor registration numbers and educate the public on bone marrow and blood stem cell research. She will remain active on the registry list until she reaches the age limit of 61 years old.

While in Washington, D.C., Hinton and her team will meet with lawmakers to ask for their support in passing H.R. 3024, a bill titled the “Life Saving Leave Act” that would amend the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) to permit additional leave time for donors.

“This would ensure that somebody donating would have at least 40 hours that they would be able to take leave and not lose their job,” Hinton said.

According to research conducted by NMDP, approximately half of donors turn down the opportunity to donate due to the fear they will lose their jobs if they take off work.

Hinton and her team will also ask Congress for a $2 million funding increase for the C.W. Bill Young Transplantation Program to focus on donor recruitment efforts.

“There’s just so much to it and so many people need it,” Hinton said. “I can’t stop, you know, advocating for that, for helping people.”

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Washington, D.C

Storm Team4 Forecast: Smokey air clears up a bit on mostly dry Sunday

Published

5 hours ago

July 19, 2026

Press Room

Storm Team4 Forecast: Smokey air clears up a bit on mostly dry Sunday

4 things to know about the weather:

Drier air moving into the DMV throughout the day
A few very isolated showers could impact southern Maryland and the Northern Neck of VA (all south of D.C.)
Wildfire smoke returns to the upper levels of the atmosphere
Next rain chance? Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday

The rain on Saturday helped clear out some of the smoke from the Canadian wildfires so we’re waking up to code yellow in many places across the D.C. area, which is typical for this time of year.

Drier air is coming into the area from Canadian high pressure. While it’ll be cloudy in some places, it’ll be a nice day with lower humidity and less hazy skies.

The remaining smoke could make the sun look a little orange later. Those south of D.C. could see see some showers through the afternoon and evening.

Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to check the weather radar on the go.

QuickCast

SUNDAY
Partly Sunny
HIGHS: Upper 80s

SUNDAY NIGHT
Partly Cloudy
HIGHS: 60s (Suburbs) to Near 70F (Downtown)

MONDAY
Partly Sunny
HIGHS: Upper 80s

TUESDAY
Increasing Clouds | Scattered PM Showers & Storms (50% Chance)
HIGHS: Lower 90s

WEDNESDAY
Mostly Cloudy | Showers & Storms Likely (60% Chance)
HIGHS: Middle 80s

SUNRISE: 5:58a
SUNSET: 8:30p
Averages: 89/73F

Stay with Storm Team4 for the latest forecast. Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to get severe weather alerts on your phone.

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Washington, D.C

A Moving Truck Crash In Montgomery County Left 10 People Injured

Published

17 hours ago

July 18, 2026

Press Room

A Moving Truck Crash In Montgomery County Left 10 People Injured

Officers responded to the intersection of Columbia Pike and Fairland Road around 1:45 p.m. on Saturday for a reported multivehicle crash.

Preliminary information indicated three to four vehicles were involved, including a Tesla Cybertruck that was split in half. Multiple people were initially trapped in separate vehicles, authorities said.

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Washington, D.C

Weather Alert: Brace for unhealthy air, heat index over 100° and strong storms

Published

1 day ago

July 18, 2026

Press Room

Weather Alert: Brace for unhealthy air, heat index over 100° and strong storms

4 things to know about the weather:

Weather Alert for wildfire smoke, heat advisory and PM storms
Air quality will improve this afternoon
Expect feels-like temperatures over 100°
Scattered, strong storms between 3-7 p.m.

Poor air quality, high heat and a chance for strong storms may affect your Saturday plans.

Air quality started code red, which is unhealthy, in much of the region. Code red means everyone should limit time outdoors, especially if doing strenuous activities, experts say. Expect air quality to shift from one neighborhood to the next and throughout the day.

Overall, a code orange air quality alert is in effect, which means conditions are unhealthy for sensitive groups.

Southwest winds will increase, and the change in wind direction will improve the air quality but bring high humidity along with it. A heat advisory has been issued.

Highs will get back into the low 90s with a heat index topping 100° before storms finally arrive.

Locally strong to severe storms will be capable of producing very heavy rain and the risk of urban and flash flooding. Rain chances will remain low for the morning hours, but all bets are off after 2-3 p.m. and storms will be widespread from 4- 5 p.m. onward.

Storms will linger into late Saturday night before tapering off around sunrise Sunday morning. Sunday afternoon and Monday will turn out to be quite nice, followed by a humid and stormy Tuesday.