It is so powerful to see donor families touched by the miracle of organ and tissue donation dedicating their time and effort to promote the cause.
We encourage you to read this story from the Cincinnati Enquirer about Carolyn Henry Glaspy, the mother of former Bengals wide receiver Chris Henry. Following his death in 2009, Glaspy made the decision to donate her son’s organs and tissue. Since then, Glaspy has found a calling to advocate for donation, and minority donation.
She works closely with LifeCenter Organ Donor Network – Greater Cincinnati’s organ and tissue procurement organization for which she’s made 25 appearances in the past year.
From the article:
“I don’t ask for anything,” Glaspy said while sitting in her sparsely furnished, wood-frame house. “I didn’t ask God to take my son so I could make money doing this. It gives me joy in my heart to try to help.”
“There is something beautifully organic and genuine about her,” said Andi Johnson, LifeCenter’s director of public relations. “No event we call her about is too big or too small.”
Connie Hilger eagerly anticipated her adult son’s visit home for Christmas in 2009. During his visit, he teamed up with his former classic rock band for a reunion show at a local pub. Connie’s family, as well as the family of another band member, were excited to be together for the holidays and were enjoying the show. Suddenly, trouble broke out in the pub.
Connie says “If one life can breathe easier because of me, then I’ve gained my own measure of success. If I could speak to my donor I would say: thank you for helping to make people at a small county fair smile. You’re a success.”
“An argument erupted behind me,” Connie said. “I stood up to move to the other side of the table but my snow boot caught on the rung of the chair just as one man pushed another into me, knocking me over.” Shortly thereafter, as Connie was still lying on the floor, a large man fell onto her legs. Connie sustained serious injuries: her left leg was broken and her right ACL was blown out.
Aside from the pain and day-to-day struggles that dealing with two injured legs presented, Connie’s injuries also meant she could not adequately do her job, which she had a great passion for. After serving as Montana’s property tax supervisor for 30 years, Connie was at the time working as the local county fair manager. Although the work was taxing (including everything from negotiating entertainment contracts to cleaning horse stalls), she absolutely loved it.
“Seeing smiling faces at a summertime county fair is one of the warmest feelings a heart can experience,” Connie said. (more…)
TNT’s “Leverage” is one of the few shows my husband and I watch together. The series is about a group of former thieves, hackers and the like who left their sordid pasts behind and now work for the greater good.
I was excited to settle into the couch recently to catch up on a few episodes on our DVR. When we started watching the episode from Aug. 21 I immediately knew I was going to have to take notes.
Within a few minutes of the opening scene in an airport, we see a nervous woman with a cooler. It was clear to me this was going to be about organ donation (as some organs are transported in coolers). I didn’t want a show I loved to be ruined by a bad storyline about donation. “No,” I whined to my husband. “I’m not ready for this.”
I think my apprehension was understandable. As a donation professional, I have seen many TV shows and movies portray donation incorrectly and perpetuate myths. While “Leverage” took some liberties for the sake of the storyline, one message was abundantly clear: the need for organ donors is real.
The episode, called “The Cross My Heart Job,” began in the Cincinnati airport. The “Leverage” crew was passing through on the way home from another job when Nate Ford (the leader of the group) noticed something awry with a woman carrying a cooler. He observed a carefully-choreographed swap of her cooler for another. (more…)
This Chicago Defender article sheds light on the important issue of increasing organ and tissue donation awareness amongst minorities.
In the story, Cook County Commissioner Robert Steele, an African American, shares his own story of receiving a living liver transplant from his sister. After battling diabetes for more than three decades, the transplant gave Steele a new lease on a healthier life.
Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network reports that 2,017 African Americans are on the waiting list for a kidney in Illinois. Additionally, more minorities receive organs than donate.
An important reminder to encourage all people, regardless of race, to register to be organ and tissue donors. You can do so by visiting Donate Life America.
Check out this important video from Upstate New York Transplant Services for teens, about making the choice to be organ and tissue donors. In this video, teens discuss the facts and myths often held about donation, and we hear some testimonials from organ and tissue recipients.
A reader recently wrote into the San Antonio Express-News to ask this question. She had “heard of families losing a loved one, being pressured to donate the deceased’s organs, then being charged for organ removal.”
In the newspaper’s response, they quote the Texas Organ Sharing Alliance: “It does not cost anything to be a donor. No costs directly related to organ and tissue donation are passed on to the family.”
A Columbus Crew rookie said on Friday that a tissue donation saved his dream of playing soccer in the professional league.
Several years ago Bernardo Anor suffered from a torn anterior cruciate ligament, 10TV’s Tracy Townsend reported on Friday.
“I received the ball I was going to turn with the ball when a guy came and tackled me from behind and he basically hit my knee,” Anor said.
Anor’s doctors said that he would be out of the game for nearly a year. His treatment options included a tissue transplant or a series of surgeries to replace the torn ligament with one from his right leg, followed by a lengthy recovery and rehab.
Anor chose the transplant. He said he was grateful for such a gift.
“Since I got that from somebody I’m willing to give it for some other people too that’s why I’m a registered donor,” Anor said.
LifeCenter Organ Donor Network worked with the Cincinnati Enquirer to share information about which donors can donate organs, and which can donate tissue.
Specifically, to be an organ donor and person must die in a particular way: they must be “brain dead – register no brain activity in tests. Then the person must stay on a breathing machine to keep oxygen-rich blood flowing to the vital organs.
Next, the person undergoes tests to assess organ function, and organ-donation officials work to find the best recipients for the available organs. The testing and organ-matching process usually takes up to 24 hours. One organ donor can save up to 8 lives.
In addition, up to 50 people may benefit from one person’s tissue donation, with skin, eyes, bones, ligaments and tendons all going to individual recipients. Tissues, unlike organs, do not have to be transplanted immediately, and matching is less specific.”
Families from south central Wisconsin gathered to light candles over the weekend to remember some departed loved ones who brought hope and life to others.
The “Reflections of Life, Reflections of Love” ceremony was a chance for families to honor loved ones who helped save someone’s life through tissue donation.
“When you lose a loved one, you don’t want them forgotten, so it’s a way to have them remembered,” said Loni Wednt, whose departed mother and daughter were both donors. “And you are with people, others who know what you’ve gone through, and they understand that too, so you don’t have to be afraid to cry or share your feelings.”
Overall, organ and tissue donation rates are rising, but not enough to fill the need of patients. There are still misconceptions about what various religions teach on the topic of donation. This article examines this discussion – an important read.
Says the article: “no major religion prohibits organ donation. Some faiths leave the decision up to the individual. Others actively encourage organ and tissue donation as an act of love and charity. Pope Benedict XVI has been outspoken in favor of donation and carried a donor card himself until he assumed the papal throne, according to the Vatican.”
Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White has released a new Public Service Announcement aimed at creating awareness about organ and tissue donation in the African-American community. August is National Minority Donor Awareness Month. The PSA features 14-year-old heart recipient Mikahla Thornton from Bloomington, Illinois.
“Mikahla’s triumphant story will likely inspire the millions of listeners who have not yet registered as organ and tissue donors to learn more,” White said. “We are confident that the message in this PSA will help to save lives.”
Studies have shown that people of the same ethnic group prove to be better matches for organ donation, according to Gift of Hope.
Though the choice is different for each person, the decision to become an organ donor has the potential to turn a tragic situation into hope for others.
Recently, two Anne Arundel County residents provided that hope.
Terry Elvin Potts of Glen Burnie had his organs removed for donation after he was fatally injured when his car hit a utility pole in Shady Side.
And Kara Micciche, a 17-year-old Broadneck High School student who was fatally injured July 12 while crossing Ritchie Highway, played a part in helping seven people when her organs were donated.
Micciche and Potts are two of about 40 deceased donors in the state so far this year, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network website.
They were also two of nearly 2.2 million people in the state — about 48 percent of Maryland’s population — registered to be organ donors, said Natalie Benavides, executive director of Donate Life Maryland, which runs the Maryland donor registry.
There are more than one million tissue transplants performed annually in the U.S that save lives, relieve pain, improve mobility and even regenerate cells to form new skin and bone. Donated human tissue is processed into usable “allografts” for surgeons by tissue banks. The tissue banking industry is highly regulated by federal agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) along with state and local regulatory bodies to promote the safety of patients.
Another key group that promotes safety standards and best practices for honoring tissue donors is the nonprofit American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB). Since its founding in 1976, the AATB has promoted the safety, quality and availability of donated human tissue. The AATB is now considered the definitive source on safety and standards in the tissue banking industry, and most tissue banks in the country elect to become AATB-certified in a show of commitment to the organization’s high standards.
So why is the AATB important to you and me? The organization:
Saves and improves lives of tissue recipients
Makes tissue transplants safer for patients in need
Ensures respectful treatment of tissue donors who have given the gift of life, by making certain that their gifts are maximized and produce safe and quality results
Promises that new, safe possibilities for tissue transplantation will continue to emerge (more…)
When Devin Katacinski was just 12 years old he sustained second-degree burns after spilling a cup of scalding coffee on his arm. The coffee immediately took the skin off from the bottom of his thumb to the middle of his forearm.
Here Devin discusses his injury, and recovery, which was thanks in part to a skin transplant processed by tissue bank AlloSource. Devin reflects on how he feels to have received this gift of life from a donor.
The NJ Sharing Network’s first-ever SHARE NJ 5K Race to Save Lives Through Organ & Tissue Donation held last month in New Providence was a huge success. The event included more than 4,000 participants, including volunteers, children, transplant recipients, donor families, and sponsors. The 5K additionally helped to raise more than $443,000 for the cause.
Congrats to all who participated in this inaugural event!
Check out this red carpet video from the 2011 Donate Life Hollywood Inspire Awards last week.
This includes interviews with several Hollywood insiders (including Jack Black, Brad Ellis of Glee, Ryan Merriman and others) who have made significant contributions to the organ and tissue donation community. Great to see these folks leveraging their voices for the cause!
Says Black, on those who register to be donors: “it takes courage to do it … I admire anyone who is so selfless to do such a thing.”
The Donor Dash is a 5K run/walk to honor the lives of organ and tissue donors, celebrate the lives of organ and tissue recipients and recognize those who continue to wait for a lifesaving transplant.
Coordinated by organ recovery organization Donor Alliance, the Dash is in its 12th Year and is always a fantastic event.
If you live in or near Denver, we encourage you to come out and participate Sunday, July 17 in Washington Park. Click here to register and for more information.
We were moved by this column from the San Antonio Express-News urging people to register as organ and tissue donors. The author poetically notes:
“From time immemorial, the capacity of the human heart, to do both good and evil, has been contemplated by philosophers, poets and priests. Its best and purest impulse pushes people to remarkable acts of generosity and selflessness of which the most supreme is to save a life.”
Unfortunately San Antonio has a low donor consent rate. The columnist works with a tissue recovery specialist from the UT Health Science Center of San Antonio’s Organ Transplant team to disple commonly heard myths about organ and tissue donation, which may keep some people from consenting to donate.
A worthwhile read and great rally call in support of organ and tissue donation.
“As a registered nurse, I have solicited and educated families about organ and tissue donation,” said Margie Mayfield. “However, as a mom receiving this precious gift, it is truly beyond anything I can imagine.”
In 2010, Margie tore her ACL while playing with a child in an inflatable jumping house that she was sponsoring at a church event. Immediately after the injury she was unable to straighten her leg or bear weight on it. Following an MRI that confirmed the tear, Margie decided right away that she would pursue an allograft tissue transplant to repair her knee, if possible.
“I love to bike, play tennis, power walk and swim,” said Margie. “With the injury I was limited. I had a neighbor living with the same injury and I didn’t want to do the same thing.”
However, the gift of tissue donation was not something that Margie took lightly or for granted.
“I was educated in what it means to have donated organs or tissue available, and I trust the system,” said Margie, who works as a parish nurse. “It’s also a faith journey. I want to live my life fully and this offered me fullness and I didn’t want to pass that up.” (more…)
Devin was a typical 12-year-old: an active boy who loved to play soccer and spend time with his friends. Unfortunately, an accident put Devin’s life on pause.
On a Sunday morning at church, Devin was pouring a cup of coffee when the cup slipped and he spilled the coffee on his arm. “When it spilled on my arm, my long-sleeve shirt started clinging to my skin, and my skin was bubbling on my hand,” said Devin. The hot coffee immediately took the skin off from the bottom of his thumb, to the middle of his forearm.
Devin was rushed to the emergency room where he was diagnosed with second degree burns. “They wrapped up my arm, put chemical water on it to cool it and dumped it in a tub, which made it very numb. They also gave me pain killers that put me asleep for a few hours,” explained Devin.
Following treatment at the emergency room, Devin was referred to the Joseph M Still Burn Center at WellStar Cobb Hospital in Austell, Georgia where he remembers noticing that everyone’s burns were so much more severe than his own. Within hours, he was taken into surgery where the doctors removed the burned skin and placed allograft skin on top of it. Allograft skin is a gift of life from a deceased human donor. The days following consisted of a lot of sleep and saltine crackers, but it was the donor skin that really helped in the healing process. The proteins in the donor skin were ideal to help to heal the burn and encourage Devin’s body to regenerate new skin. (more…)
As medicine continues to advance, so too do possibilities for tissue donation and transplant. One of the latest medical treatments available use stem cells from tissue donors.
Check out this exciting story out of Baltimore with Dr. Mark Myerson, director of Mercy Medical Center’s Institute for Foot and Ankle Reconstruction. Dr. Myerson used AlloStem Stem Cell Bone Growth Substitute to re-grow bone in the ankle of a woman from New Jersey who was originally told her leg would have to be amputated following a devastating car accident.
Cameron Chana was the eldest of four children and a born leader, said his mother, Lori. “He led our family into the new areas of family, sports, church, travel, adolescent and teenage relationships and education. He was also truly gifted at developing relationships. As a son, brother, relative or friend, Cameron set the benchmark on caring, supporting and loving others.”
During his high school years, Cameron worked at a pharmacy, volunteered at a hospital and was very involved with the Chana family’s church. He went on mission trips to Seattle, Czech Republic and Dominican Republic and was always focused on kids – helping, guiding and directing them to focus on the positive things in life.
Cameron attended college at Eastern Illinois University (EIU) and became very involved with the Sigma Pi fraternity. He graduated from EIU with a degree in marketing on May 9, 2009, and was accepted into their MBA program to begin on June 15. Tragically, twenty-two-year old Cameron was killed in a bus accident two weeks before he would have started his MBA. (more…)
Tom Cycyota, the CEO of nonprofit tissue bank AlloSource, and tissue recipient Sarah Tomicich, who also works at AlloSource, were interviewed for this important story during Donate Life Month. This is a great reminder that tissue donation can have the same life-saving and life-enhancing benefits of organ donation.
It was the holidays in 2005 and Sarah Tomicich was a young professional excited about her new job in the finance department of a large Denver company. Fun-loving and outgoing, Sarah was happy to offer up her talents for the playful “Stupid Human Tricks” competition at the company’s annual year-end party.
Sarah’s trick was a squirm-inducing move she’d been doing since she was a little girl: rising up on her tip toes, she would rotate her feet until her toes were pointing straight behind her body, with her legs still together. But the trick didn’t go smoothly this time.
“My ankle popped; I thought I broke it,” Sarah said. “The pain was so bad. It was horrible.”
During an initial trip to the doctor, Sarah’s injury was misdiagnosed as a sprain. She went home hoping it would heal on its own. For the next several years Sarah tried to deal with the pain, but her ankle was never the same. The injury began to take a serious toll on her active lifestyle: she could no longer do the things she loved, including skiing and running. She would push herself to play team sports like kickball, but be miserable from the pain for days afterwards. (more…)
We are honored to share this video blog from donor parents Pat and Jay Landers of Springfield, IL. Here Pat and Jay remember their son, Ryan, who was killed in a car accident and became an organ and tissue donor. So far, Ryan’s gifts have impacted 61 recipients in at least 12 states and Korea through 2 organ, 54 tissue and 5 vascular transplants.
Pat and Jay share in their own words what it has meant to them to be a donor family.
We were so pleased to meet this brave donor family via the Gift of Hope organ procurement organization.
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