Tag Archives: living donation

16 Dec

As we reach the end of the year, I find myself reflecting on what the Rose Parade has always symbolized to me: new beginnings. Since the Rose Parade happens on New Year’s Day, it serves as a reminder that every year brings fresh opportunities for hope, generosity, and connection. New beginnings happen for donors who give the gift of life, for donor families who honor their loved one’s wishes, and for recipients who receive another chance at life. Seeing the parade and meeting our float participants each year grounds me in our mission.

Ending the year by highlighting stories of hope and generosity feels especially important. It is easy to focus on the challenges around us, but these stories remind me that kindness is powerful and life-changing. I hope that as you read this blog, you feel encouraged to consider your own connection to donation. Occasionally, I like to ask those who are not registered, would you accept a donated organ if you needed one? It is good food for thought for anyone considering registering as an organ, eye, and tissue donor.

Spotlight on the Rose Parade Float

Donate Life’s Rose Parade Float

This year’s Rose Parade float invites us to come together and appreciate our everyday blessings. I believe this kind of shared gratitude can be an uplifting experience that gives us strength and inspiration. The Rose Parade is one of the most-watched events on television, and the opportunity to share Donate Life California’s mission and good work with millions of viewers is something we never take for granted.

The float, along with the walkers and riders who accompany it, represents real people and real miracles. Every individual featured on or alongside the float is a reminder that donation happens year-round. On New Year’s Day, we take a moment to honor a few of the many brave individuals whose lives have been changed by the selfless decision to say yes to donation.

Honoring Our DMV Heroes: Raquel Armstrong and Zeida Woods

This year, we are proud to honor two remarkable DMV employees who embody the courage, generosity, and impact of donation.

Zeida Woods

Raquel Armstrong, a living liver donor, saved her mother’s life in a moment when time was running out. What moved me most about her story was how close to death her mom became before she received the transplant. Raquel’s determination, love and advocacy speak to the heart of living donation. Her willingness to act brought her mother back to health and left her family with a legacy of strength.

Raquel Armstrong

Zeida Woods shares her story in memory of her brother, Carlos Giovanni Woods, who registered as a donor at just 18. When he died unexpectedly in a tragic accident, their mother made the courageous choice to honor his donation wishes. What resonates with me most is the strength it took to make that decision in the midst of profound grief. Carlos went on to save a life with his heart donation, and his legacy continues almost 30 years later.

This year, Carlos will be honored on our Rose Parade float with a floragraph, a floral portrait created entirely from natural materials. It is a beautiful and symbolic way to recognize donors whose gifts continue to ripple outward, long after their time on earth. Seeing his floragraph among the tributes reminds us all that one decision, made at any age, can change the world for another family.

Both of these stories remind me that caring people can work miracles. Simple answers in difficult situations can lead to a longer life, a marriage, a growing family, or simply the opportunity to enjoy everyday life. Hearing these stories makes me pause and be thankful for the blessings in my own life.

The Role of DMV Partners in Saving Lives

Our DMV partners interact with millions of Californians each year and are truly on the front lines of donation education. Nineteen point eight million Californians would not be registered without their help. DMV teams are part of our public relations efforts, our education efforts, and our mission in every sense. Recognizing DMV employees on the float this year is a small way to say thank you for the tremendous impact they have made. Since 95 percent of donor registrations come through the DMV, their work is essential to every life saved.

Looking Ahead with Hope and Purpose

As we enter the new year, I am filled with hope. I know Californians are generous, caring people. I look forward to hearing more stories and meeting more individuals who demonstrate the everyday heroism found in organ, eye and tissue donation. In the coming months, I hope to continue conversations about our College Education Programs and the option to register on California Income Tax Forms.

The new year is a fresh start. As you watch the Rose Parade, I invite you to take a moment to support and encourage each other, not only in donation but in everyday life. If you have questions or topics you would like to see in future blogs, please reach out. I look forward to sharing more on the first Wednesday of each month as we continue this important journey together.

For more information about Donate Life California, please visit www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org or in Spanish at www.doneVIDAcalifornia.org.

19 Feb

By
Lacey Wood

in
News

Black History Month – Organ Donation Facts

Let’s celebrate and honor Black History Month

When we think of Black History Month, organ donation is not the first thing that comes to mind, but it is important to bring to light facts affecting this community. According to the American Journal of Kidney Diseases, among all ethnic groups, African Americans are least likely to receive a living kidney donation. This statistic hits hard when over 33% of the individuals on the United States transplant waiting list are African American. This gives an opportunity to bring together the African American community through an organization called AMAT (Association for Multicultural Affairs in Transplantation).

AMAT is the industry leader in educating communities of color on organ donation as well as bringing together the Donate Life community to inspire change. AMAT and Donate Life California hope to lessen the impact of these facts by sharing stories of African Americans who have chosen to be living kidney donors to help their own family or community. Here is a link to some of these incredible stories from AMAT: http://amat1.org/stories-of-hope/

#BeLikeTrish

14 May

By
Administrator

in
Press Release Uncategorized

Donate Life California Launches Living Donation California

Contact: Brianne Mundy, Program Manager
(o) 619.563.5137 (m) 515.988.0476
brianne@livingdonationca.org

SACRAMENTO, Calif., May 14, 2013 – Living Donation California launched today as a first-of-its-kind, state-authorized information and referral service to inspire and inform people to be altruistic living kidney donors. Through its website, www.LivingDonationCalifornia.org, the free service provides information about living kidney donation and refers potentially eligible individuals for evaluation at a transplant center.

“There is a national shortage of kidneys available for transplant, and the need is especially acute in the State of California. By encouraging people to be altruistic kidney donors, Living Donation California gives hope to the thousands of transplant-eligible Californians who spend years on dialysis – years they could be spending more time with family, working and living healthy, active lives,” said Lisa Stocks, Board President of Donate Life California, administrators of the state’s organ and tissue donor registry who together with fifteen kidney transplant programs developed the Living Donation California initiative.

In California, kidney transplant candidates wait up to ten years, and for many patients twice as long as the national average, for a kidney transplant from a deceased donor. Circumstances allowing for organ recovery at the time of death are a rare (less than one percent) occurrence, so the state’s transplant community is focused on increasing living donation to help the large and growing number of Californians in need of kidney transplants.

The vast majority of living kidney donors are family or close friends of their recipients. A small but growing percentage are altruistic donors who offer the gift of a kidney without expectation of receiving anything in return. Federal law prohibits buying and selling organs for transplant, although in some cases living organ donors may be reimbursed for travel and other expenses incurred during the donation process. However, altruistic donors commonly feel greatly empowered by their choice to donate a kidney.

On April 2, 2013, Kelly Wright of Newport Beach donated a kidney to a Boston man she met on Facebook in January. She says she has no regrets. “I will never have a bigger accomplishment in my life than having one of my kidneys working inside of another human who may have died without it. Living donation is a blessing for both donor and recipient! I am happy to share my story – there may be others willing to save a life!”

Living kidney donation is possible because most people are born with two kidneys. In the case of a person with two healthy kidneys, one can be transplanted into someone whose kidneys are failing. After the transplant, both the donor’s remaining kidney and the transplanted one will typically grow in size to perform at a higher level of function so both the donor and recipient can still live healthy and active lives.

Tad Suwa, a Sacramento firefighter, is one of the thousands of Californians hoping to be freed from dialysis by receiving a kidney transplant so he can serve his community and enjoy time with his girlfriend and their children. “I just want to get back to my job and my family needs me to work and play with them again.”

“Living Donation California will be a valuable resource to invite people to explore living kidney donation,” said Dr. Jeffrey L. Veale, kidney transplant surgeon and Director of the Kidney Transplant Exchange Program at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. “Many people do not know that as a living kidney donor they can help not only one person, but spark a chain of transplants that could help 30 people or more receive lifesaving kidney transplants.” The story of one such series of transplants is illustrated in a mini web documentary “The Chain,” which features a series of transplants initiated by an altruistic donor whose kidney was transplanted by Dr. Veale. “The Chain” will premiere on May 14 on Participant Media’s TakePart YouTube channel.

The Living Donation California website comprehensively explains the short-term and long-term risks associated with living kidney donation, which are considered to be low overall and comparable to other common surgeries. In fact, 95 percent of living kidney donors report minor to no complications. Living Donation California urges anyone considering living kidney donation to weigh the benefits and the risks and thoroughly discuss the donation process with the medical personnel at the transplant center to which they are referred.

By the numbers:

More than 17,000 Californians are on the kidney transplant waiting list.
2,073 Californians received kidney transplants in 2012.
- 1,441 were from deceased donors
- 631 were from living donors
- 756 people died in California in 2012 waiting for a kidney transplant.

(Source: Organ Procurement and Transplant Network, U.S. Department of Health & Human Services)

History

In 2009, during his battle with pancreatic cancer, Apple founder Steve Jobs received a liver transplant. But, during that process he grew frustrated over the shortage of organs in the U.S. In cooperation with then-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Donate Life California, The Altruistic Living Donor Registry Act of 2010 (SB 1395) was signed into law, authorizing the state’s organ procurement organizations to establish a service designed to “promote and assist live kidney donations.” Living Donation California is that service.

Living Donation California is a free information and referral service that encourages California residents to be altruistic kidney donors, provides accurate information about living donation, and refers potentially eligible individuals for evaluation at a transplant center.

Living Donation California is administered by Donate Life California, which manages the state-authorized organ and tissue deceased donor registry. Donate Life California’s Board of Directors is composed of eight representatives of the state’s four non-profit, federally designated organ procurement organizations (OPOs): OneLegacy, Lifesharing, Donor Network West and Sierra Donor Services. In addition, Living Donation California is supported by a Board of Advisors including participating California kidney transplant programs.

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