Connections 2Q19

SECOND QUARTER 2019

A NEWSLETTER FOR GIFT OF HOPE’S PARTNERS AND FRIENDS

CONNECTIONS ALL ROADS LEAD TO A SPECIAL CONNECTIONS ISSUE DEDICATED TO THE THIRD ANNUAL CHICAGO ORGAN SUMMIT

THIS ISSUE Tristen’s Tale “Paco” Rodriguez a True Champion Ken Smikle: A Beautiful Heart Molly Glynn: Shining Bright

CONNECTIONS IN THIS ISSUE

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DONATION DONATION BENEFITS BENEFITS EVERY EVERY FAMILY FAMILY

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Chicago Organ Summit

The 2019 Chicago Organ Summit highlighted the stories of four families and the benefits organ and tissue donation offered them.

Tristen’s Tale

PRESIDENT/CEO J. Kevin Cmunt VP OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS AND GENERAL COUNSEL Maureen Kwiecinski 630/758-2715 mkwiecinski@giftofhope.org

Tristen Scholly saved four lives when he became an organ and tissue donor in 2016. Today, his family continues to keep his lifesaving legacy alive.

MANAGER OF COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING Therese Michels 630/758-2603 tmichels@giftofhope.org

Organ Summit Panel Discussion

MANAGING EDITOR Sonia Sotello 630/930-5831 ssotello@giftofhope.org

Five Gift of Hope hospital partners and donation advocates discussed their roles in making organ and tissue donation happen at the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit.

National Donate Life Month Recap Gift of Hope and its partners held more than 200 community events during April to focus attention on organ and tissue donation and honor donors and their families.

On the Cover

Hundreds of people, including government officials, community leaders, medical professionals, organ and tissue donation advocates, transplant recipients and the families of organ and tissue donors, descended upon the J.W. Marriott in Chicago on April 24 for the Third Annual Chicago Organ Summit. Hosted

by Gift of Hope and sponsored by the City of Chicago and the Illinois Secretary of State, the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit honored organ and tissue donors and took a closer look at how donation benefits families.

Connections provides the Gift of Hope public and professional communities with news and information about Gift of Hope, organ and tissue donation and the importance of being a registered organ and tissue donor.

We encourage you to share this newsletter with your friends and associates and learn more about donation by visiting Giftofhope.org. We mail Connections to people who have expressed an interest in Gift of Hope or the topic of organ and tissue donation. If you would like to be removed from our mailing list or would prefer to receive the newsletter electronically, please email your request to ssotello@giftofhope.org.

CONTRIBUTORS Nesha Logan 630/758-2743 nlogan@giftofhope.org Veronica Moreno 630/758-2799 vmoreno@giftofhope.org Shauna Schuda 630/758-2744 sschuda@giftofhope.org Marion Shuck 630/758-2616 mshuck@giftofhope.org Tony Sullivan 630/758-2721 tsullivan@giftofhope.org

Copyright Š 2019. All Rights Reserved.

DONATION BENEFITS EVERY FAMILY MESSAGE REACHES SUMMIT BENEFITS OF DONATION, THE FOCUS OF GIFT OF HOPE’S 2019 CHICAGO ORGAN SUMMIT Hundreds of people, including government officials, community leaders, medical professionals, organ and tissue donation advocates, transplant recipients and the families of organ and tissue donors, descended upon the J.W. Marriott in Chicago on April 24 for the Third Annual Chicago Organ Summit.

Hosted by Gift of Hope and sponsored by the City of Chicago and the Illinois Secretary of State, the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit honored organ and tissue donors and took a closer look at how donation benefits families.

Cindy Abitua, the mother of organ and tissue donor Tristen Scholly, was one of four donor family members who shared her donation story during the summit.

Tristen was 21 years old when he became an organ and tissue donor in 2016 following an accidental fall in Chicago. Tristen was an incredibly generous man during his lifetime and became a donor to help others. In all, Tristen saved the lives of four people through organ donation and enhanced the lives of others as a tissue donor. Cindy takes comfort in knowing that Tristen is somehow still out there helping other people through his gifts. The family has established a foundation in Tristen’s honor to support other donor families. (See story on page 4.)

Honoring and remembering donors and their families is what April’s National Donate Life Month is about. The Organ Summit helped punctuate the month-long observance. “This year’s Chicago Organ Summit is all about how donation benefits every family and improving the way we care for and support donor families,” said Kevin Cmunt, President/CEO of Gift of Hope. “The summit is a true collaborative effort that unites Chicago in making a positive impact on organ and tissue donation and transplantation.”

NBC reporter Regina Waldroup was the emcee for the event and moderated two panel discussions. The first panel featured the emotional testimony of the Abitua-Scholly family, whose members shared their personal journey with donation. Also included in this panel were Brighty Sullivan, RN, Northwestern Memorial Hospital; Jeffrey Schwartz, MD, FACS, Loyola University Medical Center; Todd Bono, Organ Recovery Coordinator, Gift of Hope; and Rodney McDonald, the transplant recipient who received Tristen’s lungs.

The second panel included Dinee Simpson, MD, Northwestern Memorial Hospital; Julie Fitzgerald, MD, FAAP, Loyola University Medical Center; Ellen Omi, MD, Advocate Christ Medical Center; Richard James, MDiv, BCC, Advocate Christ Medical Center; and Cindy Mele,

Gift of Hope presented four guest speakers at the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit with the Lifesaving Partners Award for their lifesaving contributions and commitment to organ and tissue donation. Left to right: Joe Foust, donor husband, Cindy Abitua, donor mother, Nico Scholly, donor brother, Alex Rodriguez, donor brother and Renee Ferguson, donor in spirit wife.

MSN, RN, Franciscan Alliance Inc. This group discussed their respective roles in the donation process and the different ways that, from their perspectives, donation benefits families.

Last year in Illinois, 1,424 organs were transplanted with 1,139 organs coming from deceased donors and 285 organs coming from living donors. Tissue donation in Illinois is up 67% with nearly 3,000 people donating tissue that will help thousands of people worldwide.

“While it’s easy for people to understand how donation benefits recipients, people forget that becoming an organ and tissue donor also benefits donor families,” said Cmunt. “The Chicago Organ Summit shines a light on how a donor’s legacy doesn’t end with his or her death but lives on through the gift of donation.”

The Chicago Organ Summit was created in 2017 in response to President Barack Obama’s request to the nation during the 2016 White House Organ Summit to improve organ and tissue donation and transplantation across the country. Chicago answered the call and remains steadfast in its commitment to establish the city as the transplant hub of the nation, break down barriers to donation and be the leader in providing compassionate support for donors and their families.

Ambassadors for Hope volunteers showed their commitment to donation and support to donor families at the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit.

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TRISTEN’S TALE Donor Family Helps Wipe Away the Tears That Never Dry Cindy Abitua had to live through every parent’s worst nightmare. On Nov. 13, 2016, her world shattered when her 21-year-old son, Tristen, had a tragic fall from the third-floor balcony of his brother’s apartment in Chicago and was declared brain-dead.

“When we arrived at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, we were brought into the quiet room and told that there was nothing more they could do,” Cindy recalled. “Some people say let them go in peace, but we knew we had to honor Tristen and allow him to donate his organs to save and change lives. That’s when Tristen really became a true hero.”

A mother of five, Cindy and her family endured three difficult days of standing vigil over Tristen and waiting for his traumatized organs to reach a point where they could be recovered and offered as lifesaving gifts to others. This process gave Tristen’s family more time with him and the opportunity to say goodbye.

Tristen ultimately saved four people’s lives with his gifts of life. His right kidney and liver went to a 35-year-old woman, his left kidney and pancreas went to a 30-year-old man, his heart went to a 31-year-old man and both lungs went to a 52-year-old man. Tristen also offered lifesaving and life-enhancing tissue gifts as a tissue and cornea donor, and his intestine was recovered for research being conducted to advance medicine.

Tristen’s heroism inspired Cindy to create the Tristen Scott Foundation to honor her son and maintain his generous legacy.

Cindy Abitua said the donation process gave her and her family members a welcomed benefit — time — which helped them process and cope with what was happening and, more importantly, to say their good-byes to Tristen.

“Our family wanted to do more for the families of donors who gave whole-heartedly to help save and change others’ lives by allowing their loved ones to live on through strangers,” Cindy explained. “As the mother of a hero, my mission is to bring awareness to the importance of being an organ and tissue donor and to not forget the heroes’ families, who are left with nothing but memories.”

Cindy does that through the Tristen Scott Foundation, which, to date, has raised more than $20,000 to support its two-part mission.

The first is to provide financial assistance — grants — to families that lack the financial means to pay for burial or cremation.

“The tragic loss of a loved one can blindside donor families, not only emotionally, but also financially,” Cindy noted. “Some donor families are not prepared to deal with the financial impact of a sudden loss,” she explained. “That’s where the foundation can help.”

The foundation has awarded 12 grants to donor families since its inception, according to Cindy.

One sticks out in her mind.

Tristen Scholly saved four people’s lives with his gifts of life, and his heroism inspired his mother, Cindy Abitua, to create the Tristen Scott Foundation to honor her son and maintain his generous legacy.

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It involved a woman from Ohio whose sister was driving to Kansas City with her girlfriend and girlfriend’s mother in

the car. While passing through Illinois, they had a car crash, and the sister died from her injuries.

The woman authorized donation on her sister’s behalf, and the organ recovery and placement took place in Illinois.

After the sister offered the gift of life, she was cremated, but the woman lacked money to have her sister’s ashes sent to her in Ohio. She applied for and received a grant from the Tristen Scott Foundation to give her the financial means to send her sister’s ashes home.

“I felt really great about being able to help her,” Cindy said. “Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been able to get her sister’s ashes.”

While she finds the opportunity to help people bury or cremate their loved ones gratifying, especially when done under Tristen’s name, Cindy finds the foundation’s other mission — providing soft cloth handkerchiefs to donor families as they wait for their loved ones to offer the gift of life through donation — particularly meaningful because of what she experienced when Tristen died.

Gift of Hope gives each donor family a memory box at the hospital while they wait for donation to occur. One of the foundation’s handkerchiefs goes in every memory box to “wipe the tears that never dry,” Cindy said.

Donation Offers the Benefit of Time

Nico Scholly (middle), shown with Tristen (second left) and his three other brothers, said the fact that people are still talking about Tristen today, three years after his tragic death, shows how donation can benefit families.

One of Gift of Hope’s guiding tenets is that donation benefits every family. What those benefits are can vary from family to family.

For donor mother Cindy Abitua and her family — the loved ones of organ and tissue donor Tristen Scholly, who offered the gift of life as an organ and tissue donor in 2016 — the benefit was time.

When Tristen was declared brain-dead, Cindy made the difficult decision of authorizing donation on Tristen’s behalf.

But once a potential donor is declared brain-dead, it can take several days to make organs viable for transplantation and to match organs with transplant candidates waiting for lifesaving gifts.

The idea for this came to her as a result of a memorable seed a friend of hers planted at Tristen’s funeral.

“What people need to realize is that you’re on an emotional roller coaster (during the donation process) where you want the pain to stop for your loved one and yourself,” Cindy said. “But that extra time we had allowed us to process. If Tristen would have just passed away and Gift of Hope hadn’t walked us down the path of organ donation, we never would have had the chance to say good-bye. The three extra days we spent with Tristen after his fall were huge for us.”

“Many people don’t realize that organs often need to recover from trauma prior to the transplant from organ donor to recipient,” Cindy explained. “That can take days.”

Family members shed many tears during that time as they stay by their loved ones’ sides to wait for the organ donation process to play out.

The Scholly family’s experience was no different, Cindy said.

When she and her family were in the hospital with Tristen waiting for organ recovery to take place, they went through a lot of tissues, she explained. The rough texture left their noses and skin above their upper lips irritated.

Days later, at Tristen’s funeral, a friend of hers approached Cindy and gave her a cloth handkerchief to dry her tears. “When my friend handed me the handkerchief at the funeral I thought, ‘Wow, I wish I had had this for the past week,” she said.

A few months later, Cindy was searching for a way to support Gift of Hope’s mission through the foundation’s work, and the handkerchief incident came to mind. “I thought we could do something with this,” she said. “I thought other people would feel the same thing I did.”

Cindy approached Gift of Hope about the idea of adding cloth handkerchiefs to the memory boxes, and the organization embraced it.

To date, the Tristen Scott Foundation has placed more than 10,000 handkerchiefs with the foundation’s and Gift of Hope’s names embroidered on them in memory boxes given to donor families.

Cindy and her son, Nico, shared Tristen’s story about the family’s donation experience and the foundation’s work at the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit held on April 24 in Chicago. “I was honored that we could be a part of it and be among the wonderful Gift of Hope family and other donor families and transplant recipients,” she said. “We were truly touched.”

Cindy Abitua (left) and son Nico (second left) joined caregivers involved in Tristen’s case in sharing information about the family’s donation experience at the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit.

At the event, Cindy and several other donor family members and donation advocates each received a Lifesaving Partner award in recognition of the work they have done to raise public awareness of organ and tissue donation and promote donor registration.

“Bringing awareness of being an organ and tissue donor is very important to our foundation,” Cindy said. “Not just for all the people waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant and a second chance at life, but also for the legacy of the hero who is giving them that second chance. Organ donation starts a new legacy and allows your loved to go on.”

About the Tristen Scott Foundation The Tristen Scott Foundation honors the legacy of Tristen Scott Scholly by carrying out a two-part mission. First, it provides Gift of Hope with soft handkerchiefs that are placed in each memory box that Gift of Hope gives to donor families. Second, it provides grants to help donor families who need financial assistance with burial or funeral expenses.

The foundation holds an annual fundraising event and accepts financial donations throughout the year to raise funds to support its mission. To learn more about the foundation and its upcoming fundraisers, visit tristenscottfoundation.org or follow the foundation on Facebook and Instagram.

Cindy said she had an argument with Tristen the morning before he died. “It was a normal mom/son argument, but that was one of the most painful things I had to deal with.

Because Tristen was an organ donor, I got the chance to say, ‘I’m really sorry about that.’ That time for all of us in the hospital gave us the time we needed to do whatever we had to do. That extra time really helped me cope with and understand what was going on and how I was going to wake up the next morning.”

Tristen’s older brother, Nico, became upset the first time someone asked him how donation benefitted him and his family. “I responded, ‘How can it possibly benefit me? How can you even think of asking a question like that? That’s ridiculous!’ But after thinking about it and meeting other people who have gone through the same situation, it has helped me realize that donation does offer some benefits to donor families.”

That people are still talking about Tristen today, three years after his death, gives evidence of that, Nico said. “If my brother had just passed away without being an organ donor, it would have been hurtful to me, and I’d be in a pretty bad place mentally and physically because of it. The fact that we’re still talking about him today and seeing how he continues to affect other people’s lives shows how donation can benefit families. Rather than my brother just passing away and that’s the end of his story, his story continues because of donation.”

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HOSPITAL PARTNERS DISCUSS ROLES IN DONATION PROCESS, DONATION’S BENEFITS Five Gift of Hope hospital partners and donation advocates were part of a discussion panel titled “Donation Benefits Every Family” at the Third Annual Chicago Organ Summit. The group discussed their respective roles in the donation process and the different ways that, from their perspectives, donation benefits the families they care for.

The panel included Dinee Simpson, MD, Northwestern Memorial Hospital; Julie Fitzgerald, MD, FAAP, Loyola University Medical Center; Ellen Omi, MD, Advocate Christ Medical Center; Richard James, MDiv, BCC, Advocate Christ Medical Center; and Cindy Mele, MSN, RN, Franciscan Alliance Inc. Here is a recap of their Q&A session, edited for clarity and space:

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When our technology, skills and expertise reach their limits, to me, it’s about being with people with what I call “benevolent intent that is divinely inspired.” And so, I have my own faith perspective, but I can also embrace those who might be Christian, Muslim, Hindu or who might be atheists. Holy ground can happen amid the shadow of darkness, and a new normal comes forth that is meaningful. So, when we say we serve with benevolent intent, I think a benefit for families [who donate] is finding new meaning out of the shadow of darkness. They reach a different kind of promised land that may be painful, but joy cometh even still with this newgiven gift of hope.

Dr. Omi, how does Advocate Christ care for patients who go on to be donors and care for and support their families?

At Advocate Christ, we’re a Level 1 trauma center and a comprehensive stroke center, so, when we have people who are potential donors, their families have just gone through a terrible loss because their loved ones or family members have died.

Nurse Mele, tell us about your experience as a caregiver and how you manage preserving the option of donation and transitioning to donor care.

Our main priority is to save lives. We commit to the families, and we connect with them and earn their trust. And we do our best to make sure they don’t lose their loved ones. That is what is most important.

It’s a team effort. I can’t do that by myself. It takes the nurses and chaplains like Rev. James, who is here with me today. It takes everyone from the techs who are cleaning the room to the housekeepers in our ICU to care for our very sick patients who are going through a terrible event and for their families who are going through something sudden and devastating.

Chaplain James, how do you help families make the best and most informed decisions regarding donation?

As Dr. Omi said, it’s a team effort. When doctors leave the patient’s bedside after giving the family the first updates, chaplains and all the interdisciplinary team members support that family through their trauma. We try to help them hold on to hope. And sometimes that hope must bend into a new normal or another type of good, the best good possible.

I’ve been a nurse for 21 years. I am the Nursing Director for Emergency Services Critical Care at Franciscan Olympia Fields. It is my job, along with other colleagues, to develop the education necessary for my staff to meet the needs of donors and their families. There is education required to recognize that, while we work in health care to save lives, sometimes that’s not the reality of the outcome and that it’s important to be prepared for what can potentially come next: to work efficiently with Gift of Hope to save the lives of others and to work with staff to let them know that’s OK. That even though we went into health care to save lives, we are still doing that in different ways.

I have been blessed over the last few years to work closely with Gift of Hope. I have learned so much and have gotten to hear wonderful stories like the ones we’ve all heard here today from donor families. One of the things we do at Franciscan to honor donors and their families is that every time we have a family that authorizes donation we raise the Gift of Hope flag at our facility. We also recite a special prayer. And the entire facility knows that a family has said yes to donation. We treat that decision with honor, and a lot of respect and strength comes from that.

Donation partners closely involved in the organ and tissue donation process shared their experience with donation and the benefits it offers grieving families at the 2019 Chicago Organ Summit. From left to right: Ellen Omi, MD, Advocate Christ Medical Center; Richard James, MDiv, BCC, Advocate Christ Medical Center; Cindy Mele, MSN, RN, Franciscan Alliance Inc.; Julie Fitzgerald, MD, FAAP, Loyola University Medical Center; and Dinee Simpson, MD, Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

Dr. Fitzgerald, as a pediatrician, describe the difficulties involved in transitioning from taking care of young patients to taking part in the donation process.

dead by neurological criteria is a longer process than it is for an adult. And so, we have a lot more time often and a lot more responsibility and larger role in helping our families move through this process to understand what the horrible but very likely outcome is going to be.

It falls upon us to help them transition from the hope of survival for their own child to hope that their child can be a donor and give life to someone else. I am amazed every time I walk this path with a family who in the midst of the most horrible moment find strength within themselves to offer the gift of donation. It makes me want to work that much harder for every child and every family that we encounter. I have never in all my years of doing this had a family say they wish they had not donated. Every single one comes back and says that it was the absolute best thing that they could have done.

Over the past 20 years of my career, I’ve had the privilege of taking care of critically ill and injured children who go on to be organ and or tissue donors and to share and participate in their families’ overwhelming grief and heartbreak. I also get the privilege of taking care of the potential recipients and support their families as they await the gift. I also celebrate with them when they receive their transplants.

So, I feel very lucky to participate on both sides of this equation.

If you can imagine the potential loss of a child, it goes against absolutely everything we as humans believe should occur. Our role is to help families understand what’s going on with their children and how we’re trying to help save them. We balance families’ hope with the reality of the situation. As we move through the process, our guidelines for pronouncing children

always greeted, first, by excitement, and, then, by a moment of silence and an “oh” when the patient realizes that this gift is coming out of somebody else’s tragedy.

It’s important for transplant surgeons to encourage patients and their families to be ambassadors for donation moving forward. It’s particularly important in minority communities where there are a lot of myths around organ and tissue donation. I think that is one of the biggest roles we play when it comes to donation.

Dr. Simpson, as a transplant surgeon, how do you view your role in the final step of the donation process?

I’ve also been on both sides of donation. As a trainee in general surgery, I was involved in the donation process by helping to facilitate donation from a surgical intensive care unit. As a trainee for transplant surgeries when I was a fellow, I went on over 200 donor procurements and was involved in the process, including the moment of silence to honor the donor in the operating room to bringing organs back to the transplant center to transplant them.

Now I’m on the transplant attending side. I don’t do procurements anymore, but I’m always reminded of the gift that a donor offers. Every time I go into a patient’s room and inform him or her that we have a compatible organ, I’m

I also often encourage recipients to write letters to donor families to express their gratitude.

Often, though, it’s the recipients themselves who ask about corresponding with the families of the donors. I tell them to write first to Gift of Hope and that the organization will facilitate the process for them. Some patients come back to me and say what a wonderful experience it was.

So, I think encouraging families to give back through donation advocacy and expressing gratitude to donor families are extremely important parts in this process.

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FRANCISCO

“PACO” RODRIGUEZ: A L I F ES AV I N G C H A M PI O N

Alex Rodriguez did not expect that speaking about his brother, Francisco “Paco” Rodriguez, at the Third Annual Chicago Organ Summit would be as difficult as it was — especially 10 years after losing him. As he looked out at the more than 350 faces in the audience determined to keep a promise he made to Paco many years ago, he admitted, “No matter how much time passes, this never gets easier.”

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Paco was the youngest of Alex’s siblings, and, judging by his accomplishments before his death, he was a talented boxer with a bright and promising future. A passion for boxing ran in Paco’s family. His father was a professional boxer in Guadalajara, Mexico, and his three brothers trained as boxers. But it was Paco whom the family pinned their hopes on to one day “make it to Las Vegas,” Alex said.

“Boxing is a sport that unified us,” said Alex. “My dad’s rule was, ‘If you want to go out, we’ll go out, but to the gym.’ That was it.” Alex considers that was his father’s way of keeping his sons busy and away from trouble on the streets of Chicago.

A PROMISING FUTURE A five-time National Golden Gloves Champion as an amateur fighter, Paco, known as “El Niño Azteca” (The Aztec Kid), earned a spot in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials, went professional in 2005 and won the vacant USA Illinois State Super Bantamweight title in 2007.

When Paco got a shot at a second and national level Super Bantmanweight championship fight in Philadelphia in 2009, his family was extremely proud of him and confident that he would come home with the belt. With a national title, Paco’s career and his dream of being a real champion would gain significant momentum.

“That’s what every boxer wants,” Alex said. “He already had the Illinois belt, but you get a second belt and a national one, and you’re on your way to Vegas. We all wanted that for him.

Out of all of us, he had a real chance.

We wanted to have a true champion in our home.”

A DEVASTATING LOSS Paco was in top physical shape and was prepared to win, but on the night of the fight, Friday, Nov. 20, 2009, he lost his life in the ring. He was 25 years old and left behind his loving family, including his young wife and baby daughter.

Paco collapsed after the ninth round and was taken to a local hospital.

Alex, who had stayed behind in Chicago with the rest of Paco’s family, flew out to Philadelphia with his mother and sister as soon as they got the news. According to Alex, surgeons spent hours trying save Paco’s life, but, two days later, he was declared brain-dead.

A representative from Gift of Life, the organ procurement organization in Philadelphia, approached Alex and his family to ask if they wanted to authorize donation on Paco’s behalf.

A CHAMPION’S LEGACY “We had never discussed organ donation before,” said Alex. “I guess we figured we would never have to deal with it. After discussing it as a family, we agreed that Paco had

Paco Rodriguez followed in his father’s footsteps when he pursued boxing and worked hard to establish a name for himself and his family within the sport.

a strong heart and that it should continue beating as long as possible.

We knew it was the right thing to do and what he would have wanted.”

Paco returned home a champion — but a champion of a different kind.

Through his donated gifts, he saved five lives — one of them was his uncle Ramon’s, who received one of Paco’s kidneys.

Two years after Paco passed away, Alex and his family met and developed strong bonds with those who received Paco’s gifts. During the reunion, Paco’s daughter felt her father’s heart beating in the chest of Alexis, the woman who received it. That special moment was captured on video.

“We have the moment recorded,” Alex said. “One day, when she is old enough to truly understand what kind of hero her father was, she’ll see it, and it will mean the world to her.”

Sometime after Paco’s death, while visiting him at the cemetery, Alex promised his brother that he would keep his memory and legacy alive by becoming a donation advocate and sharing Paco’s story with as many people as possible. For nearly 10 years, Alex has fulfilled that promise.

“It’s amazing to be able to extend the lives of others,” Alex said. “We were put on this earth to take care of each other, to give and to help other human beings, and we can all do that through organ and tissue donation.”

Nearly 10 years after his younger brother’s death, Alex Rodriguez shared Paco’s story with hundreds of people at the Third Annual Chicago Organ Summit.

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SHINING BRIGHT: Chicago Actress Saves Four Lives Through Donation

Molly Glynn’s smile could light up any stage.

The 46-year-old American actress and Chicago theater performer appeared regularly on the hit nationally syndicated TV show Chicago Fire. “She just had a presence about her,” said Joe Foust, Chicago actor and Molly’s husband. “People just loved her humor and how good she made others feel.”

Molly Glynn and her husband Joe Foust often discussed their views on organ and tissue donation and agreed it was the right thing to do.

On Sept. 5, 2014, Molly and Joe took one of their frequent bike rides in Erickson Woods, a forest preserve in Winnetka, Ill., located just north of Chicago. The beautiful fall day turned dark as a fast-moving storm and high winds descended upon the couple. As they rode to get out of the storm, a large tree uprooted, falling on top of Molly.

Although she was wearing a helmet, Joe could tell that his wife of nearly four years was seriously injured.

She was transferred to Evanston NorthShore Hospital but was pronounced brain-dead the following day. “Deep down, I knew she was gone, but it was still hard for me to really grasp that truth,” said Joe. It was at this time that Joe was introduced to Gift of Hope.

According to Joe, he and Molly frequently talked about their final wishes and their views on organ and tissue donation. They both believed that it would be a waste not to be donors. “When I pass, I want my whole body to be donated to science,” said Joe. “If advancements in medicine [can be made] or additional physicians can learn how to care for and save the lives of hundreds of other people, I’m all for that — 100 percent.”

Molly donated five organs that went to four different people. “For me, the organ donation process wasn’t very complicated,” said Joe, reflecting

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on that day. “I was able to spend a little extra time with Molly while preparations were being made to have her organs donated. I knew she was gone, but it was comforting to me to be able to sit next to her for a few moments more.”

Joe also reflected on how thankful he was that he and Molly had a conversation about organ and tissue donation. He stated that it took stress off him knowing that this is what Molly would have wanted. He felt well cared for by members of Gift of Hope and by the hospital staff during the donation process.

“Someone came in and handed me this blanket,” said Joe. “I found this extremely comforting as I sat with Molly before her organs were donated.” These blankets are provided to donor families by the Kyle Zuleg Foundation in honor 16-year-old Kyle, who, like Molly, was killed by a falling tree limb in a forest preserve. Kyle’s family also made the selfless decision to donate Kyle’s organs, saving five people’s lives.

One mission of Kyle’s foundation is to support organ donor families.

In honor of those who offer the gift of life through organ donation, a monogrammed “Forever in Our Hearts” blanket is given to the families as they wait while their loved ones are prepared to provide the gift of life.

Thanks to organ donation, Molly’s star continues shining bright through the recipients of her gifts.

Joe encourages everyone to consider organ and tissue donation. “You can’t take it with you, so why not help others,” said Joe. “I’m proud to say that I am a registered organ and tissue donor and strongly believe that families should talk to one another about their wishes to donate.”

On April 23, Nearly five years after his wife’s death, Joe Foust met the transplant recipients who received Molly’s gifts and shared her story the next day at the Third Annual Chicago Organ Summit.

The day before Joe shared his story at the Chicago Organ Summit, he met with the recipients of Molly’s gifts for the first time. I was nervous about meeting them but was interested in seeing who Molly helped,” said Joe. “We talked about Molly, who she was and how much she has touched the lives of so many people.”

KEN SMIKLE:

A BE AUTIFUL HE ART

Ken Smikle was a trailblazer, a consummate journalist, a lover of jazz and a savvy businessman who gave freely of himself to those in need. It’s easy to imagine that his life’s work and generous actions touched, inspired and brought a positive impact to the many people he met throughout his lifetime. On Sept. 12, 2018, Ken died of congestive heart failure but left an indelible imprint on a world that, by many accounts, he helped to make a better place.

One of the lives he enriched was that of his wife, Emmy Award-winning TV journalist and investigative reporter Renee Ferguson, with whom he spent 35 years of his life.

A PAIRING OF POWERFUL PROPORTIONS

Ken Smikle left an indelible mark in the world of journalism and in the lives of those who knew and loved him.

As if by design, the pair, both members of the National Association of Black Journalists, met during the 1980s at the height of their careers. At the time, Renee had moved to Atlanta to work for CBS Networks’ Atlanta Bureau.

When they met, Ken, who was born in New York City, had already worked as a journalist and editor at various New York-based publications and, in 1988, launched Chicagobased Target Market News, a trade magazine and research firm that put The Buying Power of Black America, the firm’s annual report, on the trade publication landscape. The firm was the first organization of its kind to mine and provide data and marketing and advertising-related news that expounded the buying power of African-American consumers.

Renee matched Ken in many ways, including dedication and drive. An Oklahoma City native, she earned a journalism degree from Indiana University in Bloomington, Ind. She explored her career beginnings as a student intern at the Washington Post and later cut her professional teeth as a writer for the Indianapolis Star newspaper in Indianapolis. In 1977, Renee broke a glass ceiling when she joined Chicago’s WBBM-TV news team and became the first African-American woman to work as an investigative reporter in Chicago. In the early 1980s, she worked as a network news correspondent for CBS News in New York City and Atlanta and returned to Chicago in 1987 to join the UNIT 5 investigative team at NBC affiliate WMAQ-TV.

A BEAUTIFUL HEART Renee and Ken shared a zest for life, a strong work ethic and love for journalism, and, over time, Ken became a friend and advisor to Renee.

“When I moved to New York, Ken showed me how to use the subway and taught me how to really connect with people because he was wonderful, and he was a journalist,” Renee said. “He understood my career and the challenges it had, so it was really good to just be able to talk to him. I learned so much from him. He was my best friend.”

Ken and Renee welcomed their only son, Jason Smikle, into the world in 1987 and married in 1989.

In 2009, the pair confronted a devastating reality with grace and courage.

After Ken suffered a heart attack on an airplane, doctors said, given his condition, he had limited time to live.

“They gave him maybe two years,” Renee said.

“Our mindset was to enjoy every minute, every day, every hour; don’t waste, don’t squander one second.” After no one gave Ken a chance, Renee believes it was through love that two years turned into 10.

A BELOVED’S PLEA Throughout her career as an investigative journalist, Renee met and worked with Jack Lynch, Senior Advisor at Gift of Hope, on several news stories about the importance of organ and tissue donation. It was unimaginable to her at the time that the plea she’d made on behalf of others she would one day make on behalf of her beloved.

After 10 years, which Renee refers to as “a gift and borrowed time,” Ken’s heart was irreparably damaged, and he collapsed for the last time.

“I sat in the hospital room wondering what I could do,” Renee said. “I thought, ‘Well, he needs a heart transplant.’

I started a campaign to find a donor for my husband. I never thought that it would be something that I would ever ask for myself, and it felt a little weird, kind of selfish, but not really because I wanted him to stay around if he could.”

Renee Ferguson and Ken Smikle were best friends who shared a passion for journalism and a zest for life.

A heart was ultimately found for Ken, but it was too late. By then, his other vital organs had deteriorated, and Ken instructed his wife and doctors to give the heart to someone “who could make better use of it.” Ken’s other organs had declined to such a degree that it also made it impossible for him to become a donor despite being on the Illinois Organ/ Tissue Donor Registry.

On April 24 of this year, seven months after her husband’s death, Renee shared Ken’s donor in spirit story at Gift of Hope’s Third Annual Chicago Organ Summit in Chicago.

“It’s a pleasure and a privilege to help clarify the mythology and the negativity around donation,” Renee said at the summit. “It isn’t easy. I can understand people’s skepticism and fear. But we are all part of the family of man, of humanity. So, when this technology evolved so that you could perhaps keep someone else living at the time you die by donating, there is no more profound a gift. Life and death take their toll on us, but there is nothing better in the world to do than to give.”

Renee Ferguson shared her husband Ken Smikle’s donor in spirit story in front of hundreds seven months after he died and emphasized that donation is the most profound gift one could give.

Asked how others will remember her husband and what she most loved about him, Renee’s eyes filled with certainty as she said, “Ken was a real person, intellectual, funny and generous.

To him, no one was a stranger.

What I loved most about him? His heart, his beautiful heart.”

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April was National Donate Life Month Every year Gift of Hope joins the celebration to focus national attention on organ, cornea and tissue donation and transplantation. During the month, Gift of Hope encouraged people to register their decisions to become organ and tissue donors, honor deceased and living donors, and celebrate lifesaving and lifeenhancing transplants. The organization hosted more than 200 community and hospital events during the month.

“My first NDLM with Gift of Hope was a blur,” said Maureen Kwiecinski, Vice President of External Affairs and General Counsel at Gift of Hope. “I am amazed by all the time and effort we and our hospital partners invest in the month-long celebration. Since joining Gift of Hope in October 2018, I have been awestruck by the dedication of the Gift of Hope team to partner with hospitals and communities to make donation happen. I have never had the honor of working with such an amazing group of people.

Each and every day, everyone devotes their best energies to the care of families.”

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CONNECTIONS

HOSPITAL PERFORMANCE* METRICS

Gift of Hope works in partnership with 183 hospitals and nine transplant centers to meet the ever-growing demand for donor organs and fulfill the organization’s vision — that every opportunity for organ and tissue donation is successful. Here’s a look at key donation performance metrics for Illinois and northwest Indiana hospitals that have had at least one organ donor during the period noted and the contributions these hospitals are making to offer hope and life to others.

Donation Donation Timely

Organ Conversion Authorization Notification Hospital Donors Rate Rate Rate Adventist Bolingbrook Hospital

1

100

100

100

Advocate BroMenn Medical Center

1

100

100

100

Advocate Christ Medical Center

8

65

65

96

Advocate Condell Medical Center

1

100

100

94

Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital

2

100

100

100

Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center

1

100

100

86

Advocate Lutheran General Hospital

3

80

80

83

Advocate South Suburban Hospital

1

50

50

100

Advocate Trinity Hospital

1

100

100

84

Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital

1

67

67

90

Blessing Hospital

3

100

100

100

Carle Foundation Hospital

3

50

50

91

Centegra Hospital: Huntley

1

100

100

80

Centegra Hospital: McHenry

1

100

100

100

Community First Medical Center

3

57

57

100

Community Hospital of Munster

3

80

80

100

Delnor Hospital

1

100

100

100

Edward Hospital & Health System

1

40

40

90

Franciscan St. Anthony Health: Crown Point

1

100

100

93

Ingalls Hospital

1

100

100

76

John H. Stroger Jr. Hospital of Cook County

1

33

33

100

Little Company of Mary Hospital & Health Care

2

75

75

97

Loyola University Medical Center

2

43

43

90

*Hospitals with at least one organ donor through 3/31/19. Note: Data subject to change due to Gift of Hope’s quality assurance process.

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Donation Donation Timely

Organ Conversion Authorization Notification Hospital Donors Rate Rate Rate Memorial Medical Center

1

75

75

85

Methodist Hospital: Southlake

1

100

100

57

Metro South Medical Center

1

100

100

100

Morris Hospital

1

100

100

100

Mount Sinai Hospital Medical Center

2

60

75

81

Northwestern Medicine Central DuPage Hospital

1

100

100

91

Northwestern Memorial Hospital

2

23

25

94

OSF Saint Francis Medical Center

10

58

58

100

OSF St. Joseph Medical Center

1

33

33

100

Presence Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center

2

75

75

93

Presence St. Joseph Hospital

1

50

50

100

Presence St. Joseph Medical Center

5

78

78

94

Riverside Medical Center

1

100

100

63

Rush University Medical Center

7

58

58

97

Sarah Bush Lincoln Health Center

1

100

100

100

St. Catherine Hospital

1

67

67

100

St. John’s Hospital

4

63

63

92

Swedish Covenant Hospital

3

100

100

95

Unity Point Health: Methodist

1

100

100

100

University of Chicago Medicine

6

53

53

93

University of Illinois Medical Center

4

63

63

100

Vista Medical Center: East

1

100

100

92

West Suburban Medical Center

2

75

75

100

DEFINITIONS

Totals

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Organ Donors

Donors from whom one or more organs were recovered for the purpose of transplantation. This includes both donation after brain death, or DBD, donors and donation after circulatory death, or DCD, donors.

CONNECTIONS

102 78% 78% 93%

Donation Authorization Rate The rate at which authorization for donation is obtained, expressed as a percentage.

Donation Conversion Rate

The rate at which potential donors are converted to actual donors, expressed as a percentage.

Timely Notification Rate

The rate at which hospitals contact Gift of Hope after a death or within one hour after an individual meets the criteria for imminent death and before the withdrawal of life-sustaining therapies, expressed as a percentage.

STATE OF DONATION 113,671*

3,994*

in the U.S.

in Illinois

1,327* in Indiana

The number of people waiting for heart, liver, kidney, lung, pancreas or small bowel transplants as of May 1, 2019. * Based on data from the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network

GIFT OF HOPE DONATION ACTIVITY

Organ Donors Organs Transplanted Organs Per Donor Tissue Donors Bone Donors** Skin Donors** Heart Valve Donors** *Through March 31

2018*

2017*

% CHANGE

103 276 2.68 854 507 752 34

99 256 2.59 712 497 582 45

4.04% 7.81% 3.47% 19.94% 2.01% 29.21% -24.44%

MAKE A DIFFERENCE! REGISTER TO BE AN ORGAN AND TISSUE DONOR GIFTOFHOPE.ORG

**Subset of Tissue Donors

6,717,650 60% 200 :10 25

ILLINOIS ORGAN/ TISSUE DONOR REGISTRY

As of April 30, 2019

Of adults (18 or older) in Illinois are registered as organ and tissue donors.

In 2019, more than 200 people registered for transplants in Illinois will die while waiting.

Every 10 minutes, a new person is added to the national transplant waiting list.

One donor can save or enhance the lives of more than 25 people.

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FPO INDICIA TO BE ADDED

BY PRINTER

425 Spring Lake Drive Itasca, IL 60143

To learn more about organ and tissue donation, visit Giftofhope.org

: S R E D A E R R U O TO

S N O I T C E N N CSOGOING

L A T I G I D I

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

To better serve our donor families and donation partners, we are revamping our Connections quarterly newsletter and will deliver all future issues to you — our loyal readers — digitally.

Over the next few months, we will restructure Connections to enhance the way we provide you with news and information about organ and tissue donation that is timely, relevant and meaningful to you. Your patience is greatly appreciated as we go through this revamp.

In the meantime, stay up to date on our news and events by visiting GiftofHope.org or following us on social media: Facebook.com/www.giftofhope.org and on Instagram at GiftofHope_.

If you would like to be added to or removed from the Connections email distribution list or have any questions or concerns as we move from a print publication to a digital one, please submit your request and feedback via email to Managing Editor Sonia Sotello at ssotello@giftofhope.org.