May Meeting Recap: 30th Annual OTS Tree Planting Dedication
On May 7, 2021 Organ Transplant Support held the first virtual Tree Planting Dedication in honor of organ and tissue donors. OTS has dedicated a tree to honor the gift of life of organ donors since 1990, and we wanted to continue this tradition in a safe manner for everyone. Because of Covid-19, we held a private tree planting dedication at Naper Settlement in April, and a film of this ceremony was shown at the virtual meeting on May 7.
We were honored to have an outstanding group of speakers for the virtual meeting. The first speaker was Dr. Harry Wilkins, the new CEO of the Gift of Hope Organ and Tissue Donor Network. Dr. Wilkins is also a transplant surgeon, and he brings a unique perspective to the important work of the Gift of Hope. At this meeting Dr. Wilkins explained how organ donations dropped dramatically during the early part of the Covid-19 pandemic last year. However by the end of 2020, donations of all organs increased to almost normal levels, which means more lives were saved through organ transplants.
The next two speakers at this program spoke about their experiences through a very personal lens of a donor mom and a transplant recipient. Cindy Abitua explained how she received a phone call in the middle of the night that no mother ever wants to receive. Her 20 year old son Tristen was in the hospital after a tragic fall. Cindy is the mother to five sons, and the entire family was able to say goodbye to Tristen at the hospital. Tristen had previously told his parents of his decision to be an organ donor someday, and because of this he was able to save 5 lives through organ donation.
One of the recipients of Tristen’s gift of life also spoke at this OTS meeting. Rod McDonald received new lungs in 2016, and he was finally about to breathe easily because of this gift. Rod had written to his donor family soon after his transplant, and he has developed a close relationship with Cindy Abitua and her family. In fact, as a tribute to Tristen, Rod McDonald climbed up the 94 flights of stairs in the Willis Tower along with the Abitua family. That is certainly a tribute to Rod’s strong new lungs!
In addition to these speakers, we also showed a video tribute to organ and tissue donors along with an original poem written by OTS member Joe Kralicek. The poem “The Gift” is included in this newsletter.
OTS sincerely thanks our speakers for this special Tree Planting Dedication of May 7: Dr. Harry Wilkins, Cindy Abitua, and Rod McDonald. Thank you also to Joe Kralicek and everyone who contributed to make this a meaningful way to honor the gift of life of organ donation.