Donate Life ECHO to Save Lives
At just 4 days old, Adrianna Martinez’s doctors confirmed she was born without small intestines, and her only chance for survival was a transplant.
Adrianna’s family waited patiently as their little girl grew big enough for a transplant, and in November 2009, seven days after her first birthday, Adrianna received a liver, pancreas and small intestine transplant.
Currently there are more than 2,300 people in Arizona on the national organ transplant waiting list. Of those waiting in Arizona, more than 59 percent are minorities, a number that is reflected across the board nationally, according to the United Network for Organ Sharing.
From July 9 to July 22, we celebrate the fact that everyone has the opportunity to save lives through organ and tissue donation. The Association for Multicultural Affairs in Transplantation partnered with Donate Life America in 2015 to create Donate Life ECHO, which stands for Every Community Has Opportunity. Donation gives every community the chance to make a difference, and some even watch the gift of life come full circle.
Adrianna is now a healthy 4-year-old, and everyone in Adrianna’s family has since registered as donors.
“Her story has inspired many of our friends and family,” says Tasha Bowman, Adrianna’s mother. “Some were once afraid to donate, and now they support it.”
These two weeks of Donate Life ECHO bring attention to the current health needs of multicultural communities and help encourage registrations and education to end the waiting list.
Join Donate Life Arizona and Arizona Hospital and Healthcare Association on July 18 from 10 to 11 a.m. MST for a Twitter chat about #DonateLifeECHO. Give hope to those who are waiting on the generosity of a stranger by linking your community to the conversation and registering to be an organ and tissue donor.
“Donation gave Adrianna a normal life. We are so grateful to the family who donated their loved one’s organs,” says Tasha.
Words from a Donor Family
Michelle Montijo (r) remembers Celeste Machiche (pictured) with her family. Her sister always loved wearing red Chucks and spreading her happiness freely.
“Celeste believed in the good of people, in generosity, in motivating others and in listening with a gentle and non-judgmental spirit. She freely shared her infectious smile, positive attitude and gave the best of herself always.”
On May 23, 2012, Celeste Machiche sustained a traumatic brain injury. Just four weeks prior, at 20, she had registered as an organ, cornea and tissue donor. After death, she gave a second chance at life to four other people.
It was just 20 years earlier when Machiche’s grandfather received a kidney from a young man who had also passed away in a vehicle crash. Her family believes that Machiche took that act of generosity to heart when she registered as a donor.
Her only sibling, Michelle Montijo, shared the impact her sister created through her generosity with health care professionals on May 19.
“I am proud to say Celeste’s preparation and mature choice has helped in our journey of grief. Celeste’s decision minimized our guilt and fear, and we didn’t have to question if donation was the right choice.
In spite of our indescribable heartache, we were able to grasp onto hope, something we so desperately needed at a time when we felt like all hope was lost. One of the greatest fears of a grieving family is that their loved one will be forgotten, and that their name will no longer be said. In knowing she gave life to others, Celeste’s name and love lives on.
As you return to your workplace may you be reminded that your commitment to donation affects those around you, and every action you and your team take matters. By ensuring donation protocol is followed, that your patients and families are treated with dignity and respect, and ensuring a patient’s authorization to be a donor is communicated to Donor Network of Arizona, you too will give grieving families the gift of peace. Your actions, just like my sister’s, are profoundly important, allowing the opportunity to spread love and generosity through donation. On behalf of myself, my family and our Celeste, we thank you for your dedication to this work. May you be inspired by Celeste and the many other donors to continue to make a difference in people’s lives by your continued support of organ, cornea and tissue donation.”
To register in honor of Celeste, please visit her page on LiveOnAZ.org.