LifeLines February 2015 - Washington Regional Transplant

WINTER 2015
N E W S
2015 Donor Family
and Community
Advisory Council
F O R
D O N O R
WRTC’s Community Partners
Ellen K. Alterman
Neil’s wife
WRTC would not be able to excel in healing our
communities through organ, eye, and tissue donation
without the assistance of our many partners.
Ellen and Dan Blalock
Jennifer’s parents
Bettsy and Ray Crawford
Hilary’s parents
Raenelle Finney
Erin’s sister
Jennifer Young Foote
Adam’s mother
Alisa Hughley
Carey’s sister
Linda Hurd
Zack’s wife
Ken Ivey
Erin’s father
Terry Murray
Alan’s wife
Teresa Roman
Hernan’s daughter
Hedy Rossmeissl
Paul’s wife
Carla Shoap
Evin’s mother
Valerie Stalnaker
Tom’s wife
Nancy and Tom Susco
Tim’s parents
Bill Thomasson
Taylor’s father
Jeanne Ward
Jessica’s mother
A PUBLICATION
OF WASHINGTON
REGIONAL
TRANSPLANT
COMMUNITY
FOR DONOR FAMILIES
REMEMBERING & SHARING
PRIVATE FACEBOOK GROUP
BEADONOR.ORG/FACEBOOK
WRTC LifeLines Winter15.indd 2
F A M I L I E S
(Above) Tree of Life at the DC DMV and (Below)
Rhode Island DMV Branch Wear their Donate Life
T-shirts with Pride
WRTC is proud to once again have partnered with Inova
Fairfax Hospital, MedStar Washington Hospital Center,
and Prince George’s Hospital Center in sponsoring
the 2014 Trees of Life. Beautifully displayed in each
hospital’s lobby throughout the holiday season, each
Tree of Life is dedicated to the generous individuals who
gave the ultimate gift through donation. The trees are
adorned with personal ornaments donated by donor
families and transplant recipients to honor their loved
one or donor. A poster explaining the significance of the
Tree and a call to register as donors accompanies each
tree. A community “outreach” Tree was also placed at the
District of Columbia Southwest DMV branch with great
success. Four hundred and seventy people registered as
new donors during their visit to that branch and received
a Donate Life holiday ornament to show and share their
new commitment with family and friends.
Donate Life Ambassadors (a donor family, recipient, living donor or donation champion) along with WRTC staff
work closely with every DMV and MVA branch in the District of Columbia, northern Virginia and suburban
Maryland to educate the staff about donation. Ambassadors make monthly visits to their branch to share their
personal connection to donation with the clerks who are asking the important question, “Do you wish to be an organ
donor?” to those customers obtaining or renewing their licenses.
Our faith communities are also vital partners. Numerous local places of worship participated in National Donor
Sabbath Month this past November. For example, Metropolitan AME Church of Washington welcomed Dr. Keith
Melancon, chief of the George Washington Transplant
Institute, as their Sunday worship service speaker.
Mt. Calvary Baptist Church in Rockville, MD, hosted its
first educational display table and donor drive. Church
members were very excited about the opportunity to
register more people in their community.
WRTC has been very fortunate to have a strong media
partner to reach the Hispanic community. Eventos VIP
Pass Magazine is very committed to strengthening our
Done Vida brand and spreading our life-saving donation
message. Last year WRTC and Eventos VIP Pass
partnered to promote the Tournament of Roses Parade
Donate Life float, a multimedia and multi-platform
campaign called Usa Tu Corazon (Show Us Your Heart),
and our annual Festival por la Vida celebration, reaching
more than 7,000 people on site and thousands more
through extensive media coverage.
2/4/15 3:28 PM
orm s
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Donate Life
America Benefits
from DSW “Shoe
Lovers Care Leave Your Mark”
Campaign
Donate Life America (DLA) gained
national exposure when it was
nominated to participate in the DSW
Designer Shoe Warehouse “Shoe
Lovers Care – Leave Your Mark”
Campaign. DLA was nominated by
Miriam Shoap, an employee of DSW’s
corporate office.
Miriam’s brother, Evin, received a
heart transplant when he was 15.
Sadly, Evin died in 2007 at the age of
23. Upon his passing, Evin was able to
be a cornea donor. His mother, Carla,
is an active WRTC volunteer, serving
on the Donor Family & Community
Advisory Council and as a DMV
Ambassador. But the donation
connection does not stop there.
Miriam’s wife, Toni, was so inspired
by Evin and the Shoaps’ commitment
to donation, that she became a living
kidney donor to a stranger on Evin’s
birthday in 2009.
le
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WRTC’s Donor Family and Community Advisory Council surround the floral portrait of Hilary
Crawford Bradford. Hilary’s mother, Bettsy (Center) and father, Ray, represented Hilary and
all donor families and recipients in the DC metro area at the Tournament of Roses Parade in
Pasadena on New Year’s Day. Hilary’s floral portrait was on the Donate Life float “The Never
Ending Story.”
Jumping for Joy… and for Life!
Five years ago, Monique Whitney donated her kidney to her father, saving his life and ensuring many more
adventures together as a family. To celebrate this important anniversary, Monique wanted to do something
“crazy,” something big. So she gathered a group of donor family members, living donors, transplant
recipients and WRTC staff to ‘Jump for Life’ – right out of an airplane! Congratulations to Monique and
her amazing father. Here’s to more crazy adventures ahead!
(Right) Monica Davis, Donate Life Ambassador, expresses glee as she comes in for a smooth landing!
WRTC LifeLines Winter15.indd 3
2/4/15 3:28 PM
A PUBLICATION OF WASHINGTON REGIONAL TRANSPLANT COMMUNITY WINTER 2015
New Bereavement Web Resource
A new website resource for any bereaved person, What’s Your
Grief (www.whatsyourgrief.com) provides a blog, podcasts and a
wealth of resources on self-care, kids and grief, music, and many
other grief-related topics. Written by grief professionals within the
donation community, this website offers literature and everyday
helpful tips to accompany you on your grief journey. Copies of the
booklet, Surviving the Grief of and Overdose Death, are available by
contacting WRTC’s DFAs at donorfamilyadvocates@wrtc.org.
os of
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Martin Klaiber Memorial
Golf Tournament
their family
ictoria, TX,
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and living in Virgin
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an organ donor. Un
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ar
aw
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do
of
of Victoria,
the importance
ts in their hometown
ien
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other donor fam
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sinesses
Texas, parti
pport from local bu
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2014 WRTC Volunteer of the
Speaking to the WRTC staff in December,
Stephanie Klaiber laughingly recalled her
husband Martin’s passion for golf, noting that he
frequently broke things in their home practicing
his golf swing. Stephanie wanted to honor
Martin’s life and his organ and tissue donation
Stephanie Klaiber
by organizing a memorial golf tournament that
and Kent Cayce
would give back to three local charities, including
WRTC. Despite the torrential rain, spirits were high at the River Creek
Country Club in Leesburg, VA, on the first anniversary of his death
in October. At the luncheon, the large crowd warmly welcomed Kent
Cayce, a lung recipient and golf professional, who shared his personal
story of transplantation. Plans are underway for the 2nd annual Martin
Klaiber Tournament to be held in October 2015.
Year, Amanda Bisnauth-Tho
mas (Center)
Volunteer Shining Star Event
WRTC honored its amazing voluntee
rs at the Shining Stars Appreciation
event, held at the Fairview Marriot
t in Falls Church, VA, on November
16. Donor families, transplant reci
pients and donation advocates wer
e
honored for the 1,404 hours of serv
ice they provided to WRTC in 201
4.
Photo opportunities on the red carp
et, delicious food and a prop-filled
photo booth were some of the high
lights of the afternoon. Peta Cappell
o,
2013 Volunteer of the year, quoted
Former President Bill Clinton in her
remarks to the guests. “Citizen serv
ice is the very American idea that we
meet our challenges, not as isolated
individuals, but as members of a true
community…. Our mission is noth
ing less than to spark a renewed sens
e
of obligation, a new sense of duty,
a new season of service.” Peta was
delighted to introduce the 2014 WR
TC Volunteer of the Year, Amanda
Bisnauth-Thomas, a two time liver
and kidney recipient. Attending the
event with Amanda was Jose Interian
o, the father of her donor, Jami. If
you are interested in learning more
about volunteering for WRTC, watc
h
the video from the event at http://yo
utu.be/ojUuJrgUCts, visit our web
site
at BeADonor.org/volunteer or ema
il us at ContactWRTC@wrtc.org.
WRTC LifeLines Winter15.indd 4
Thomas Clark, liver recipient, Ally
Sklarew, heart recipient and Austin
Lee, kidney recipient volunteering at
the NBC 4 Health and Fitness Expo.
NBC 4 Health and
Fitness Expo
Our Donate Life Ambassador
volunteers came out with lots
of enthusiasm and energy to
register 176 new donors at
the NBC 4 Health and Fitness
Expo on January 10th & 11th
in Washington, DC. WRTC’s
largest indoor event, the Expo
hosted more than 20,000 visitors.
One highlight was having three
volunteers on the same shift realize
they all received their transplants
when they were four years old!
2/4/15 3:28 PM
Long-Time Director Speas Retires
Cindy Speas, WRTC’s director of community affairs, retired at the end of January.
Cindy’s retirement from WRTC will leave a tremendous vacancy in our hearts.
Cindy has spearheaded countless initiatives and programs during her 17 years
at WRTC, not least of which was leading the development of our current donor
registries in DC, Maryland and Virginia. Cindy has always been on the cutting
edge! We are indebted to her vision, support and dedication for propelling
WRTC’s community affairs team to our respected leadership positions in the
donation field. Cindy will be spending her new free time traveling, singing,
walking her two goldens and hanging out with her family, including her six
grandkids, who live nearby. “I will miss our volunteers as much as our staff.
We’ve been doing this wonderful work together for a decade and more,” she said.
“I thank each volunteer personally for their passionate dedication to the mission
of donation and transplantation.” Please join us in wishing Cindy a wonderful,
happy and healthy retirement!
Cindy Spea
s, director of
community
affairs
Upcoming Donor Family & Volunteer Events
1ST & 3RD THURSDAY EVENING/MONTHLY Widowhood Support Group, WRTC office
APRIL 19 Donor Family Gathering, National
FEBRUARY 22 Widowhood Grief Seminar,
APRIL 25 Paul’s Ride for Life, Reston, VA
Holy Cross Hospital, Silver Spring, MD
FEBRUARY 25 Donate Life Ambassador Training,
WRTC office
MARCH 6 Quilt square submission deadline
MARCH 14 Donor Family Healing Retreat, WRTC office
MARCH 31 Leslie Ebert Legacy of Life
Scholarships deadline
APRIL 12 National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade,
Washington, DC
Presbyterian Church, Washington, DC
www.paulsrideforlife.org
APRIL 29 Donor Family and Community Advisory
Council meeting, WRTC office
MAY 30 Grief Seminar: “Surviving the Grief of a Death
from Substance Abuse,” WRTC office
SEPTEMBER 19 Tim Susco 8K/2K, South Lakes High School,
Reston, VA, Susco8k.com
OCTOBER 13 2nd Annual Martin Klaiber Memorial Golf
Tournament, Leesburg, VA
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL LISA OR MAUREEN AT (703) 641-0100 OR EMAIL: DONORFAMILYADVOCATES@WRTC.ORG
Please let us know if your address has changed
or you would like to be taken off our mailing list.
WRTC LifeLines Winter15.indd 1
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