As music lovers gathered in Thirroul over the weekend, they were met with an urgent plea for their help to save the life of a local teenager.
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Signs peppered around the festival asked "Hey musos, can we count you in?" and urged "young groupies" and "old rockers" to come forward to become stem cell donors.
The search has been launched by the family of 14-year-old Coledale girl Maggie Banyard, who was diagnosed four weeks ago with a rare and aggressive form of blood cancer.
Acute myeloid leukaemia is an aggressive cancer which develops in blood cells in the bone marrow, and can come on extremely quickly.
The Bulli High School student's first signs of illness were a headache and sore throat.
She was diagnosed a short time later after a doctor ordered a blood test to rule out glandular fever, which found problems with her white blood cell count.
To become cancer free, Maggie needs a bone marrow transplant, and her older brother Billy was not a match.
So, to help find a donor - who could come from anywhere around the world - the family has set up a website and social media campaign calling on people to sign up to UK and Australian donation registers.
Aside from wanting a full recovery, Maggie and her family's simple request is for as many people as possible across the world to sign up to the blood donor registries.
- Family friend Jane Fullerton-Smith
"Our gorgeous Maggie has Acute Myeloid Leukemia and needs a stem cell transplant," her mum, Chantal Kershaw, said on social media last week.
"Unfortunately, her brother Billy is not a match, so it's a numbers game looking for a near 'perfect match' from a distant relative or complete stranger from the international stem cell registry."
"It could be anyone - regardless of gender, blood type etc. It could be you."
Family friend Jane Fullerton-Smith said Maggie and her family were also hopeful their campaign would help many others with cancer.
"Maggie's family is always the first to help others - whether it be climate change, bush fires, wildlife and land protection, fundraising for our much loved Coledale Primary School, coaching kids soccer teams, sponsoring local events or cleaning up the local beaches," she said.
"They are often the driving force behind a campaign or community event. I clearly remember many occasions when Maggie has given away her pocket money to support a cause she is passionate about.
"Aside from wanting a full recovery, Maggie and her family's simple request is for as many people as possible across the world to sign up to the blood donor registries."
The northern Illawarra community has already rallied, with signs at Thirroul Music Festival promoting the search over the weekend. Local cafes, including Blackbird cafe and Honest Dons, are also offering free coffees for people who donate blood, and the campaign has been shared widely on social media.
Already, Wollongong's Lifeblood collections centre has seen a spike in donor bookings.
"So far we've had around 30 people come in to donate specifically for Maggie, which is wonderful as the team was only set up late last week," spokeswoman Jemma Falkenmire said.
"They are people who have donated a sample for the bone marrow registry specifically. We also have a busy week ahead, with an extra 50 donors booked in, on top of what we would normally see."
She said Sundays were the best time for people to make an appointment, with plenty of free spots this coming Sunday and the following week.
"We would encourage young people to make an appointment to donate, people with a UK background or anybody in that younger cohort of 18 to 35 who may have had a parent or a grandparent born overseas (ethnic diversity is really important)," she said.
"A reminder that people who lived in the UK during the mad cow outbreak can now donate, also.
"More than a third of the blood we collect helps treat cancer and leukaemia patients, so those outside this cohort can donate knowing they are still helping.
"Blood products are really critical during bone marrow and stem cell transplants, in helps their bodies fight the cancer, and are also needed after transplants."
To see how you can help visit match4maggie.com or visit the Facebook page.
Kate McIlwain
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
For more than a decade, I've helped the Illawarra Mercury set the news agenda across the region. Currently I'm the paper's health reporter - covering the stories of Illawarra workers and residents in the wake of a global pandemic and at a time where our health systems are stretched to the limit.
