Grant Berg, a terminally ill 8-year-old, was in desperate need of a bone marrow transplant or he would have died. After in international search, it was a German college student half way around the world that proved to be a match and little Grant’s lifeline. Grant’s mother, Kristi Berg, told ABC News that without the bone marrow transplant, Grant would not be here today.

Marvin Zumkley, now 22, told KABC-TV the “It was crazy. It was overwhelming, and it was just a good feeling.” He says about meeting the recipient of his bone marrow, “I’ve imagined it so often in my mind and now it is a reality.” Zumkley was 18 at the time of the bone marrow transplant that saved Grant’s life.

Grant Berg was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, a rare but serious condition where the bone marrow stops producing new blood cells. Blood cells include three types of extremely vital cells: red blood cells, which carry oxygen; white blood cells, which fight off infection; and platelets, which mend blood vessels and stop bleeding.

Grant’s mother Kristi says, “For a year and a half, he lived off other people’s blood…I can’t even count the amount of transfusions he had.” Then, finally, Zumkley’s bone marrow changed all of that for Grant. Berg told ABC News that after staying up well past hid bedtime to meet Zumkley, Grant fell asleep on the car ride back to his family home in Temecula, California. Zumkley plans to relax for a few days, visit Disneyland and find other ways to enjoy southern California while getting to know Grant better.