Saving Lives - Organ donation can be the ultimate way to give of yourself to help others.

by Caralee Adams | Photography by David Ellis and Owen Stayner

When Charlie Collins’ kidney was failing a few years ago, he could only work for two hours at a time in his Glencoe, Minnesota, flower shop before he felt wiped out and had to sleep. The Thrivent Financial for Lutherans member, then 44, was delaying dialysis as long as possible, knowing full well what it meant—three-hour sessions, three times a week. He’d been through it before, at age 23, and received a kidney transplant from his father. Now, his body needed another one—a situation not uncommon among transplant recipients.

DeAnna Hoien, also a Thrivent Financial member, heard about Collins’ condition when her parents were visiting her home in nearby Buffalo, Minnesota. Hoien and Collins are not blood relatives, but cousins through marriage. The two saw each other occasionally at family functions, and Collins had done the flowers for her wedding.

Hoien offered to be tested to see if she could donate a kidney to Collins. “It just seemed like the right thing to do,” says the 40-year-old mother of two. The result? A match. After a few months of testing and preparation, the transplant took place in August 2007. Collins felt better right away, regaining his color and energy. Hoien’s total recovery took longer—about three months.

“It’s such a great gift to give,” says Collins, who is working full time again and enjoying traveling with his wife, Dona. “It’s something [for which] you can’t say thank you enough, but you try.”

By the Numbers

In 2007, organ donation saved or enhanced the lives of 28,355 Americans, according to United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS). About 44 percent of organs donated in 2007 were from living donors, while 56 percent were from deceased donors.

Still, many people don’t realize all they can donate, says David Fleming, executive director of Donate Life America, a nonprofit alliance of national organizations committed to encouraging organ, eye and tissue donation. It’s common for one person’s body to save seven lives or enhance the lives of up to 50 people though donation after death, he says.

Your heart, lungs, kidneys, pancreas and liver can be transplanted, as well as your corneas and tissues. “This is truly a cause where the lame can walk, the blind can see and those thought for dead can be raised,” all through the actions of one individual, says Fleming.

And the need for organ, eye and tissue donation is growing with our aging and increasingly unhealthy population, he adds. In 1997, there were about 53,000 people waiting for an organ transplant in the U.S. Now, there are about 99,000, UNOS reports. On average, 133 people are added to the national organ donor waiting list every day, and about 19 patients die every day while waiting.

Common Myths

So, what keeps people from deciding to donate? Americans are increasingly aware of the need for organs and believe that donation is the right thing to do, says Fleming, but many simply don’t take time to register. (For more on registration, see “How You Can Help” on page 22.)

Then there are the myths. Some people mistrust the medical system, for example, fearing doctors won’t try as hard to save them if they are organ donors—as if they are worth more in parts.

Pure fiction, says Fleming: Doctors only can consider recovering organs, eyes and tissues after a registered donor has died—not a moment before. And sometimes the circumstances surrounding a donor’s death prevent doctors from recovering organs immediately.

Other people worry that the organ donation system favors people of wealth, power and status. In reality, the system is highly regulated. When an organ becomes available, a list of possible candidates is generated from a pool of people on the waiting list. The medical decision is based on the severity of the illness, time spent waiting, blood type and other medical factors.

Still others are uncertain about how donation after death affects funeral arrangements and how their religion may view the matter. An open-casket funeral is, in fact, possible for organ and tissue donors, and each of the larger Lutheran church bodies supports organ and tissue donation as a form of stewardship, as do most major religions, says Fleming.

And don’t assume you’re too old or sick to donate, says Fleming. People of all ages and medical histories are potential donors. Your medical condition at time of death will determine what organs and tissues can be used.

Risk vs. Reward

Of course, for living donors, risk is a possible deterrent. All experience some pain and discomfort after their operation and run the risk of unknown long-term complications. Most insurance companies pay all of the donor’s expenses, but coverage varies. Despite these risks, however, UNOS reports the number of living donors has increased overall during the past decade.

Thrivent Financial member Marcia Pate, 57, of Huntsville, Alabama, feels it was God’s plan for her to give one of her kidneys to Jim Summers, 69, the founder and director of Outreach Ministries of Alabama. Summers had helped Pate’s brother, Steve, through a rehabilitation program for chemical dependency nearly 30 years earlier, keeping him out of jail. Steve eventually went into ministry.

Pate, a daycare center owner, learned of Summers’ poor health through a ministry newsletter and talked with her husband, Daniel, about being a donor. “He said, ‘That’s a big deal,’” she recalls, but offered his full support once they heard she was a match, considering it “meant to be.”

For his part, Summers was amazed by Pate’s offer to donate. “I still can’t believe it,” he says. Diagnosed with diabetes at age 60, Summers’ kidneys were operating at just 7 percent of capacity before the August 2006 transplant. “I still think about the hospital and how we had no fear,” he says.

Pate and Summers remain close friends, sharing their story at churches and encouraging others to consider donating. They know, however, that it’s not for everyone. “It’s a tremendous gift from God to give,” says Summers.

Caralee Adams is a writer in Bethesda, Maryland. She covers health and finance topics for a variety of publications.

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