Discover resources available to our donor families for honoring loved ones who shared the gift of life.

Archive for the ‘Featured’ Category

Generosity lives on

Posted on: March 26th, 2024

“David Andrew was the most thoughtful, kind and helpful person you would have ever met. He constantly brought smiles to those around him,” says Brandy, his girlfriend.

Van Gorder family

In August 2022, he suffered an asthma attack that severely injured his brain. Twelve days after the injury, Andrew went on to donate his kidneys, bone marrow, tissue and corneas.

Though Andrew passed in 2022, the Van Gorder’s journey with organ donation began in 2016. His father, David Van Gorder, was diagnosed with stage 4 liver failure and was later listed for a liver and kidney transplant. 

Shortly after his father’s diagnosis, Andrew registered as an organ donor.

“The gift of donation and life is the one thing that brings us all some comfort,” says Bonnie Van Gorder, his mother. “He was always extremely generous, and this is very fitting for him to continue to give everything he had.”

Make the generous choice

You can save and heal lives too. Register as an organ and tissue donor today at www.DonateLifeAZ.org

From table to table and heart to heart

Posted on: March 7th, 2024

Food is powerful! It is a language that speaks to the heart and soul and brings people together. Through the kindness of our donor families who have so thoughtfully shared their loved one’s stories and special recipes with us, Recipes of Remembrance has become the plate upon which the power of generosity and food are served.

“If you really want to make a friend, go to someone’s house and eat with him … the people who give you their food give you their heart.” – Caesar Chavez

PASSING THE PLATE

On Wednesday, Feb. 28th, the Arizona Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division (ADOT MVD) Tucson East Office held a “Donor Day” inspired potluck. Staff members cooked recipes from the Recipes of Remembrance cookbook to share with one another. What a beautiful way to see organ donation and registration come full circle!

DRIVING REGISTRATIONS

More than 95% of Arizonans currently registered as an organ and tissue donor made their decision while visiting an MVD or authorized third-party services office. Arizona’s driver license partners truly “drive” registrations, and we are grateful to see their dedication to honoring those who have made the decision to share the gift of life!

JOIN US

Help us honor and remember our donor heroes by cooking a recipe from our annual Recipes of Remembrance cookbook. We encourage you to share the recipes you have made on social media with the hashtag #RecipesofRemembrance so we can all share those memories together.

Find recipes for breakfast, starters, soup and chili, main dishes, sides and treats below. Click here see past copies of the Recipes of Remembrance cookbook. 

6 reasons to register as an organ and tissue donor

Posted on: February 21st, 2024

1. You could save and heal up to 75 lives.

Just one donor has the potential to save eight lives through organ donation and restore up to 75 more through tissue donation. Organ donors can restore health and extend the lives of those whose heart, lungs, liver, pancreas, kidneys and/or small intestines fail. Tissue donors help by restoring sight, preventing limb amputation, healing burn victims, repairing bone, tendon and ligament damage after trauma and much more.   

2. More than 103,000* people in the United States are waiting for an organ transplant.

The need for organ donation in the United States and Arizona is high. For most, it is the difference of life or death. The generosity of your decision could help save lives and build a symbol of hope.  

Read more about the national organ transplant list with United Network for Organ Sharing here 

3. It becomes a part of your legacy.

The legacy of those who have given the gift of life and healing live on in the people they helped and the communities that surround each recipient. This final, honorable decision speaks volumes to a person’s character. It’s choosing to be a hero—an act that cannot be forgotten. Sign up today!

4. Major religious and spiritual groups support it.

No major religious or spiritual groups oppose organ and tissue donation, rather viewing it as a gift of life to a fellow human being. Specific beliefs differ between denominations, but the common theme is that organ and tissue donation is one of the highest forms of love and support for those in need. 

Click here for more information on how specific religions view organ and tissue donation.  

5. Organ and tissue donation has a ripple effect.

The person on the receiving end of these gifts isn’t the only one whose life is impacted. These gifts provide healing to the family, friends and community of those waiting. A donation doesn’t just save a person, it saves a whole family 

6. It’s the generous decision.

Those who have made the decision to share life have made the most generous choice of all–one they might never see the impact of. It’s a gift that costs nothing too offer but has the power to transform lives.  

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

The decision to register as an organ and tissue donor is to make the choice to share life. You can register online as an organ and tissue as early as today. Sign up at www.DonateLifeAZ.org 

*Data as of Jan. 23, 2024   

Celebrating Black History Month

Posted on: February 7th, 2024

In February, we celebrate and honor Black History Month. Throughout the month, and for the remainder of the year, we will continue to recognize the Black and African American communities by highlighting their contributions to donation and transplantation in Arizona.  

Black communities have a statistically higher risk of developing heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes. According to the National Kidney Foundation, African Americans are 4 times as likely than other groups to develop kidney failure. Black and African Americans represent 13% of the U.S. population, while representing 28% of the national organ transplant waiting list. These higher rates of kidney disease can lead to the potential need for dialysis or a kidney transplant. 

In 2023, organ donors saved the lives of 105 Black or African American people. Thank you to all our donor families, transplant families and volunteers for your help in saving, healing and supporting your communities. 

Saving the Life of a Lifesaver

(l) Alex Jamison and (r) Dr. Dana Jamison

Experienced in both orthopedic and trauma surgery, Dr. Dana Jamison also believes in the power of saying yes to donation. 

“If you asked me when I was 17 what I wanted to be when I grew up, I’d have said I wanted to be an orthopedic surgeon who took care of a professional team,” she says. 

A lifesaver and healer in her own right, Dana traveled to West Africa on surgical missions. She suspects she caught an illness during one of those trips, which caused a rare kidney disorder back in 2000.  

Her husband, Alex Jamison, saved her life when he donated his kidney to her as a living donor. Because of his loving offer, she continues to heal people through her skillful practice as an orthopedic surgeon. 

Together we can help

By having the power of saying yes to donation, we can honor and improve the lives of our Black communities together.  

Join the DonateLifeAZ Registry when you apply for or renew a driver’s license or state ID at an ADOT MVD office. You can also register online at DonateLifeAZ.org.  

A second second-chance

Posted on: January 23rd, 2024
Kenneth Robinson (l) and Linda Robinson (r)

“I never had a solid diagnosis as to why my kidneys failed at the age of 26,” Linda Robinson says, though it didn’t entirely matter why she had kidney issues for 14 years. It came down to needing a transplant to stay alive.

Robinson’s father stepped up to the plate as a living donor, and she underwent a transplant surgery. Almost three decades later, a bout with COVID-19 damaged that same gifted kidney and put her on the waiting list again.

“I have been on hemodialysis since June 2022 and have had to put most of our travel plans and activities on hold,” Robinson says. “I do hemodialysis three days a week, three and a half hours a day. This is my life now.” 

She hopes another donor will come through. 

“When that happens, we will be able to travel to visit my elderly parents, our son, his wife and our three granddaughters.”

you can help

You can help provide hope to people like Linda. Registering to be a donor can help so many people who are awaiting a transplant, and lives are changed every day thanks to those who have registered. 

Register today at www.DonateLifeAZ.org

How the national organ transplant list works

Posted on: January 12th, 2024

Every nine minutes, someone is added to the national organ waiting list. Through the generosity of 19,217 organ donors, there were 38,761 transplants between January and November of 2023.  

IN A NUTSHELL

In the past, donor organs were matched first with local candidates, then regional, then national. As organ preservation technology has improved, it has become possible to transport organs across longer distances, making geography less important in this lifesaving equation. Organs are matched with candidates based on many factors, including blood type, body size, degree of illness in the candidate and the candidate’s distance from the donor hospital. 

Patients needing an organ transplant are evaluated by a transplant center for suitability. If the transplant center accepts a patient as a transplant candidate, their clinical information goes into the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN) database. 

When a donor becomes available, Donor Network of Arizona (DNA) staff enter the donor information into the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) computer system, and that system compares donor characteristics to the database of waiting transplant candidates. The system then generates a unique list of potential candidates based upon these factors. The DNA coordinator then notifies the transplant centers when their candidates are eligible to receive an organ based on the available donations.   

UPHOLDING HOPE

Every registered donor offers hope to those on the waiting list, and DNA remains committed to saving lives. By advocating for more people to register as donors, we aim to create a community where organ transplants are embraced, and donors are celebrated as heroes. Through education, we strive to increase organ and tissue donor registrations, which helps save and heal more lives and get people off the waiting list. 

HOW YOU CAN HELP

The main way to shorten the waiting list is to increase donor registrations. You can help by making the decision to register as an organ donor today. This decision has the potential to save eight and heal up to 75 more lives!  

Register today at www.DonateLifeAZ.org 

The season of generosity

Posted on: December 21st, 2023

‘Tis the season of giving during which the warmth of kindness and the spirit of generosity fill the air! 

As we immerse ourselves in festivities, it’s important to reflect on the true essence of the holiday season. Sometimes, the greatest gift does not come with a bow. Instead, it is the choice to give the gift of life. Anthony Phillips and the Lopez sisters are fantastic examples of how the choice to share life can impact a person and their families.

Choosing to give

(l to r) John Phillips, Vivian Phillips and Eva Johnson

Anthony Phillips loved to laugh and smile. “He was a jokester,” says Vivian Phillips, his sister. His smile was as big as his love for cars. 

For more than 20 years, Anthony owned a car detail shop. “He was the absolute best at it,” Vivian says. In his free time, Anthony loved to spend time in the kitchen and whip up new recipes. 

In March 2022, Anthony passed away from complications from a brain surgery. The Phillips family had no idea about Anthony’s status as a registered organ and tissue donor. 

“We found out within the last week of his life,” says Vivian. 

Collectively, they were in full support of his decision to donate life. He offered healing to dozens of people, including through the gift of his heart valves, which go to pediatric patients 75% of the time to save their lives, often from congenital heart defects. And today, the Phillips family continues to remember Anthony’s legacy and encourage others to register as donors, too. 

“We tell his story to bring light to the subject,” Vivian says.

abnormal Hearts

Adolfo Lopez, a heart recipient, and his wife faced a painful reality when they discovered that both their daughters, Adina and Andrea Lopez, 11 and 12, needed heart transplants due to cardiomyopathy.   

The excruciating wait for available hearts was compounded by the fact that thousands of children across the nation are in need of transplants.

(l to r) Adolfo Lopez, Adina Lopez, Andrea Lopez and Theresa Lopez

Adolfo grappled with anxiety surrounding the availability of donated hearts and which of the sisters would get it first, if at all.  

In early 2023, after several months of waiting, Andrea and Adina received their transplants about a month apart—gifts from families battling their own grief. Both sisters conquered their surgeries and were eager to return to their passions for dance, volleyball and other hobbies.   

“Heart disease, scars and sickness will never stop your legacy. We have been given the most amazing gift, the gift of life,” Adolfo says. “[My daughters] make me proud in everything they do.”   

REGISTER NOW

This holiday season, let us come together to unwrap the true spirit of generosity. Registering as an organ donor is a gift that costs nothing but has the power to transform lives. It is a gesture that goes beyond the season and embraces the impact one can have on another’s life. 

A new view: Eye Donation Month

Posted on: November 21st, 2023

SEEING DONATION DIFFERENTLY

Makenna Jones suffered from chronic ulcers in her right eye, which resulted in frequent styes, infections, redness, and light sensitivity. The resulting scars gradually damaged her eyesight, and later, a Phoenix doctor determined a transplant was the final option. She has since received two cornea transplants, which granted her the gift to see again.  

“It’s the kindness and selflessness it takes for a stranger to grant other people the opportunity to experience this gift,” Jones says. “It definitely changed the way my family views organ donation, and it’s something they advocate heavily for.”  

CELEBRATING EYE DONATION MONTH

Every 11 minutes, someone has their sight restored by an EBAA member eye bank. This has helped 2.3 million individuals like Makenna see life in a new view.   

Eye Donation Month is observed each November to celebrate the restoration of sight, raise awareness about cornea donation and transplantation and to honor selfless donors that have given the gift of sight.  

HOW DOES IT WORK?

The cornea is one of the many tissues that can be a healing gift for someone in need. A cornea transplant involves the replacement of a diseased or scarred tissue with a cornea recovered from a donor. The process starts with an individual’s decision to register as an eye donor, or a family’s authorization for donation. Transplantation is facilitated by eye banks.  

Luckily, there is not currently a waiting list for cornea transplants in the U.S., and most people have their cornea transplant within 30 days of needing it.    

LIVING LIFE TO THE FULLEST

“I couldn’t see people. I would be virtually blind … it was like looking through a kaleidoscope,” Alan Taylor, director of Tissue Services at Donor Network of Arizona (DNA) and cornea transplant recipient.  

Taylor was diagnosed with early keratoconus in high school, which occurs when your cornea becomes distorted. Eventually, the vision in his left eye was nothing more than color and movement.  

In December 1995, he received his first cornea transplant. Taylor says he noticed the details of the outlet on the wall after his bandages were removed – and something so simple meant so much to him.  

Nine years later, Taylor suffered a mountain bike accident that severely damaged his left eye and left him in need of a second cornea transplant. His vision was once again restored thanks to the generosity of a 75-year-old man.  

YOU CAN GIVE, TOO

You can help by making the decision to register as an eye donor today. Registering to be a donor can help so many people who are awaiting a transplant, and lives are changed every day thanks to those who have registered. Register today at www.DonateLifeAZ.org.   

Donation and Indigenous Communities

Posted on: November 13th, 2023

CELEBRATING NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH

Native American Heritage Month, recognized every November, is a time dedicated to honoring and celebrating the rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and contributions of Native Americans. It serves as an opportunity to increase awareness about the histories, struggles, and triumphs of Indigenous peoples, both past and present.  

Why is it important for us to celebrate Native American Heritage Month? It brings visibility and education to understand the diverse Native American communities across the nation. In Arizona alone, there are 22 federally recognized Native tribes.  

Ultimately, Native American Heritage Month invites us all to learn, appreciate and honor Native American cultures while promoting meaningful dialogue and respect between Indigenous and non-indigenous communities.  

DONATION AND TRANSPLANTATION ACROSS COMMUNITIES

In Arizona, there are 120 Native American/Alaska Native patients on the waiting list for a lifesaving transplant. Nine of 10 Native Americans on the waiting list are currently waiting for a kidney.  

Donation and transplantation can be successful regardless of the ethnicity of the donor and recipient. However, the chance of longer-term success and health may be greater if the donor and recipient are closely matched in terms of their shared genetic background, for most organs. 

"I KNOW MY SON'S IN THERE..."

Seventeen years ago, Rosina French, received the phone call no parent wants. Her son Trent had been involved in an ATV accident and was ultimately declared brain dead. At just 24 years old, he gave the gift of life through organ donation. 

Rosina wrote to his recipients and heard back from several. Trent’s kidney and liver recipient, Ray, is a Navajo rancher in New Mexico. After being on the waiting list for nine years, Ray got the call for his second chance through Trent’s gifts. Rosina, Ray and ray’s wife, Rita, have visited each other many times and built a friendship. 

Ray (left), Rosina (center), Rita (right)

“We’ve become rather close,” says Rosina. “I just love him dearly and try to keep in contact with them as much as possible. We always end our phone calls with ‘I love you.’ He tells me he has cravings for coffee and pizza now and he never had that problem before, so I know my son’s in there.” 

YOU CAN HELP

Let’s create a more inclusive transplant community for all. Together, we can save and improve the quality of life in Indigenous communities. 

How? Join the DonateLifeAZ Registry when you apply for or renew a driver’s license or state ID at an ADOT MVD office. You can also register online now at DonateLifeAZ.org 

The gift of donation

Posted on: November 6th, 2023

Almost 104,000 people in the United States need an organ transplant. * Nearly 2,000 of them live in Arizona. * The numbers are staggering, yet there is plenty of hope to work to save their lives.  

Just one organ and tissue donor can make a profound impact on these numbers through their choice to share life. Donated organs restore health and extend life for those whose own organs are failing. Tissue donors help by restoring sight, preventing limb amputation, healing burn victims, repairing bone, tendon and ligament damage after trauma and much more. 

THE POWER TO HEAL

Each organ donor has the potential to restore health and extend the lives of eight people! You may choose to donate the following organs: 

  • Heart 
  • Lungs 
  • Liver 
  • Pancreas 
  • Kidneys  
  • Intestines

Tissue donation is just as impactful. One tissue donor can restore 75 lives, and each year more than 1 million people in the United States are touched by these gifts. From heart valves that repair congenital heart defects, to ligaments that restore mobility, and eyes that give the gift of sight, tissue and ocular donation offers hope and healing for many. 

THE NEED

While organ and tissue transplant surgeries are now standard and highly successful procedures, the need for such gifts is still great. Every nine minutes, someone gets added to the national organ waiting list. Thousands wait to receive lifesaving organ transplants and life-healing tissue transplants in Arizona and across the nation.  

HOW?

When an individual passes away in an Arizona hospital, regulations require someone from the hospital to contact Donor Network of Arizona (DNA) to report that death. Someone at DNA then has the chance to check whether the patient was a registered organ and tissue donor through the DonateLifeAZ Registry. 

If the patient had made the choice during his or her lifetime to register as an organ and tissue donor, our team counsels and supports the donor’s family as we honor the donor’s decision to share life. If the patient has not made a decision, the patient’s family is invited to make the decision about donation on their loved one’s behalf. 

After the patient, or his or her family, makes the decision to give the gift of life, our clinical staff consults with the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) and transplant hospitals to find matches on the national organ waiting list. When matches are found, organs are allocated based on many factors, including medical urgency and distance, so that those who are in the most need are able to receive a lifesaving transplant from the generous donor. 

WHAT YOU CAN DO

The decision to register as an organ and tissue donor is to make the choice to share life. The DNA team works closely with Arizona hospitals to make the most of these gifts, saving and healing lives throughout Arizona and across the United States. You too can save and heal lives when you apply for or renew a driver’s license or state ID at an ADOT MVD or select authorized third-part offices. You can also register online right now at DonateLifeAZ.org. 

*Data as of Oct. 31, 2023 

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