A struggling veteran has revealed how he saved the life of a complete stranger – who in turn helped give his own life a renewed sense of purpose.
Tyler Delaney was severely depressed after years of service when he was asked if he could donate stem cells to a dying 68-year-old woman who lived on the other side of the country.
He never imagined that doing so would not only save her life, but lead to an incredible bond that has helped him in the fight against his own demons.
In 2017, Tyler, then 23, was living in McKinleyville, California, and felt he had lost his purpose after his honorable discharge from the US Marine Corps earlier that year.
He was working at an unfulfilling construction job that he left each day feeling ‘deeply depressed’ – and was generally in ‘a very bad funk’.
What happened next changed the whole trajectory of his life, he told The Boston Globe.
While he was struggling to cope on the West Coast, Betsy Ehrenberg, of Medford, Massachusetts, was also feeling miserable.
She had been feeling tired more often than usual and realized that something was seriously wrong when she was unable to finish clearing the snow from her yard.
When the fatigue persisted she finally visited a doctor who upon examination decided it would be best to order blood tests.
Tyler Delaney, a then struggling veteran has revealed how he saved the life of a complete stranger, 75-year-old Betsy Ehrenberg, who in turn helped give his own life a renewed sense of purpose. Pictured: The unlikely friends meet for the first time, in California for Tyler Delaney’s wedding day – seven years after his generous donation
Living in McKinleyville, California , in 2017, then 23-year-old Tyler was working at an unfulfilling construction job that he left each day feeling ‘deeply depressed’ – and was generally in ‘a very bad funk’
The night following her visit to the doctor, Betsy received a concerning phone call saying her test results showed a troubling number of abnormal blood cells.
Betsy was immediately admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital where she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, or AML, which is a relatively rare but aggressive form of blood cancer.
‘We felt early on that her disease was behaving in a way that was a little more aggressive,’ her physician at Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. Zachariah DeFilipp, said of Betsy’s condition.
Following two cycles of chemotherapy, Betsy was told she would require a stem cell transplant to cure her unhealthy cells.
But, finding a donor was no easy feat. Matches are commonly found among family members, but Betsy, like so many others, did not have an HLA-matched donor within her family.
She was then entered into the National Marrow Donor Program or NMDP, with the hope of finding her ‘perfect match.’
At this time, Tyler had recently been discharged from the Marines and was struggling to ‘start a normal life’.
He began drinking, often and plentiful, and told the Boston Globe: ‘I’d wake up depressed. Go to work depressed. There was nothing joyful about my day or my life.’
‘The fact of the matter is, he was just lost,’ said his mother, Cheryl Delaney.
But after one long, hot day of pouring concrete, he received a call that would change his life forever.
The call was from the Department of Defense’s donor program, Salute to Life, which Tyler said he remembers ‘like yesterday.’
The program collects tissue type information from consenting members of the military and shares it with the NMDP.
‘They said there was a person in their mid-60’s who has acute terminal leukemia and I was the only person in any branch of the military who was a perfect match for them. And they don’t have long to live,’ he said.
Taking no time at all to think it over, Tyler graciously said yes to donating, feeling inspired and eager to help in any way possible.
‘Getting the call to help save a life knowing I was only person in entire database that could be the one to help was so crazy. I was almost in shock when I got the call but instantly know I wanted to help,’ he told DailyMail.com.
‘After I hung up, I bawled my eyes out. I thought that God was giving me a task and a purpose to help somebody out. It was like my life had no color in it before. But that phone call colored my palette again, helps to fill a void in my heart’ he continued.
The transplant was a success and Betsy was finally on a path to recovery – yet she never stopped wondering whose cells had been injected inside her.
It would be nearly two years before Tyler, who also always wondered who had received his cells, got another call from Salute to Life informing him the recipient was ‘doing well and welcomed contact.’
There is a mandatory one-year waiting period before stem cell donors and patients are allowed contact.
Months after this had passed, Betsy finally discovered a note, scribbled on a torn-off piece of notebook paper, from her donor.
Betsy Ehrenberg, of Medford, Massachusetts, had been feeling tired more often than usual and realized that something was seriously wrong when she was unable to finish clearing the snow from her yard
Months later and well after the mandatory one-year waiting period before stem cell donors and patients are allowed contact with one another had passed, Betsy unveiled a note, scribbled on a torn-off piece of notebook paper, from her donor
Betsy, grateful for her donor’s gracious act, replied back to then 23-year-old Tyler Delaney
Finding a donor was no easy feat – matches are commonly found among family members, but Betsy, like so many others, did not have an HLA-matched donor within her family. Pictured: The cross-country friends meet for the first time, in California for Tyler Delaney’s wedding day – seven years after his life-saving donation
‘I’m Your Donor!’ the letter read in bold across the top of the page.
‘Dear Betsy, hey there! My name is Tyler Delaney . . . I hope what I did for you is helping you on a road to recovery! I’m a 25-year-old United States Marine Corps Veteran, so that’s one of the main reasons I enlisted was to help people and I’m glad I did so I could help you! I’d love to hear back from you and I do pray for you and I pray all is going well with you!’ he wrote.
‘Thank you, thank you, thank you,’ she wrote back. ‘I did not know how I would start a letter to the person who played such a unique and indispensable role in saving my life. But the only way to start is to thank you a thousand times over for your generosity of spirit in donating your marrow and stem cells to a bank without knowing whether or to whom your donation would renew life,’ she sent back.
After this initial note, the unlikely pair began regularly updating each other about their lives.
‘We just clicked,’ Tyler said, speaking of their instant connection. ‘From the beginning I knew this was something special.’
They shared news about everything from much-loved pets and endless bouts of yard work to minor injuries and pandemic-related health scares.
Tyler, whose generous donation helped pull him out of his deep depressive slump finally began to turn his life around.
And the first time the pair spoke over the phone he was overcome with emotion.
In 2022, he would go on to share news of his engagement to a woman named Kristen.
Betsy also began sharing more private details of her life, including about her partner Beth Eisenberg and their quaint East Coast life.
Then, in 2024, the moment came for the pair to finally meet in person.
Tyler and his new fiancée had invited her and Beth to their small town California wedding, which they happily accepted.
‘We are delighted that we’re coming to your wedding and we’re very excited to meet you both! Tyler, I am excited beyond words,’ Betsy responded.
‘I just had a check-up at the hospital this week and my bloodwork was “perfect!” You gifted me with some kick-ass stem cells, my brother. Beth and I are so grateful for you.’
She hid the fact that she was a little nervous about the trip. Betsy, who describes herself as a ‘progressive, gay, Jewish woman’, was somewhat concerned what her pen-pal, a Christian man half her age, would think.
‘Tyler always says he prays for me, but I didn’t know what kind of religious community he was in, or how they felt about gay people,’ Betsy said.
But to her happy surprise, Betsy and Beth were welcomed as family.
Donning a sizable cowboy hat, bolo tie, and jeans, Tyler tearfully embraced Betsy.
They shared sentimental news both big and small with one another. News of engagements, much-loved puppies and pets, endless bouts of yard work, minor injuries and pandemic-related health scares were just a few of the many conversations between the unlikely friends
In 2022, he would go on to share news of his engagement to a woman named Kristen, with his cross-country pal, as the two kept communication years after his donation
Betsy would share moments from her life, including notes of her partner, Beth Eisenberg and their quaint East Coast life. In 2024, Tyler and his shiny new fiancée sent off an invitation to their small town California wedding to Betsy and Beth, to which they happily accepted
‘Oh god, finally being able to meet Betsy for the first time after talking back and forth for five years was everything I expected!’ Tyler told DailyMail.com.
‘So emotional and perfect: just to feel her in my arms knowing it was my stem cells making that moment happen was just so surreal,’ he continued.
‘It was just, “Thank you, I love you.” It is just a deep connection – a wordless, deep connection,’ Betsy said of their meeting.
Meanwhile, Beth said: ‘I totally love the guy, everything about him. He is a very unassuming man, a hero who drives a [semi] truck. You hear about people like that, but you don’t often meet them. …I felt very, very moved when I was there.’
Seven years have now passed since their fateful encounter back in 2017 and their bond is stronger than ever.
‘Just that one time for my wedding is all we have seen each other but are planning more visits in the near future!’ Tyler said.
‘[Meeting Betsy] was a sign to me from God because I was in a very dark place and lost in life at that moment.’
To inquire about donating your blood stem cells to help save a life, visit nmdp.org.