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As an adult, Mark’s life was saved because someone gave a hero’s gift, the gift of life. Today, Mark honors his liver donor by keeping fit with a daily run. |
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Gift of Life Proudly Names New Executive Director Richard Pietroski and Bids a Fond Farewell to Thomas Beyersdorf
Ann Arbor, April 4, 2008 —Richard E. Pietroski of Ann Arbor will serve as the newly appointed Executive Director at Gift of Life Michigan beginning Friday, April 4. He will replace Thomas M. Beyersdorf, who will retire as Executive Director, after serving for more than 15 years with vision, skill and compassion.
Read the full release.
Michigan law renamed to honor infant who saved lives
through organ and tissue donation
Lansing, March 20, 2008 — Little Kyle Ray Horning will forever be a hero to the transplant recipients he saved through his gifts of organ and tissue donation, to their families and to those who knew him. Now the name of the five-month-old donor from Vassar also will live on in Michigan law. Gov. Jennifer Granholm has signed a bill that puts Kyle’s name on Public Act 176 of 2005. The infant was the first organ donor under the then new law, which upholds the ability of Michigan residents to save lives through organ donation while respecting the need of county medical examiners to conduct investigations.
Read the full release.
Michigan Strengthens Organ Donor Rights, Joins National Momentum to Bring Uniformity to Organ Donation Laws.
Lansing, March 14, 2008 —This morning, Governor Jennifer Granholm signed six bills that enhance donor rights while clarifying all aspects of the donation process in Michigan . Effective May 1, 2008 , the laws completely revise the Uniform Anatomical Gift Law (UAGL) in Michigan to more accurately reflect the current donation and transplantation environment. The laws will further uphold a person’s ability to make a binding personal decision for or against organ, tissue and eye donation at the time of death.
Read the full release.
Gift of Life Michigan has record-breaking year, introduces new programs and
grants to increase organ and tissue donation in Michigan and save lives.
Gift of Life Michigan posted another record-breaking year in 2007, with 301 organ donors and 920 tissue donors. Most importantly, the generosity of these donors and their families resulted in 881 life-saving organs and thousand of tissues for transplant and new hope for all those patients and their families.
Both the number of organ donors and tissue donors were new records for Gift of Life, surpassing the previous marks of 292 and 915, respectively, set a year earlier.
Read the full release
The Ultimate Gift
Michigan moms, dads and even kids are getting a second chance at life
thanks to the generosity of organ donors
By Jessica Schrader
www.MetroParent.com
Sherry Johnson never used to give
much thought to packing her
children’s lunches for school, giving
them their baths or walking them to the
bus stop in the morning. But today, these
moments are among her most precious.
The 36-year-old Farmington Hills
mother of two underwent a heart
transplant just over a year ago. Though she
thrived on medication for four years after
being diagnosed with cardiomyopathy
– an enlarging of the heart that can
cause heart failure – her condition then
worsened and her health declined rapidly.
Exhausted and weak, Johnson was unable
to do even the littlest of tasks for her
husband Tim and two young boys.
Read the full release
The Season of Giving
Guest Editorial by Thomas Beyersdorf, Executive Director
Gift of Life Michigan
As we celebrate the holidays, please consider making the commitment to give the gift of life. For those waiting for an organ transplant, the gift
opportunity to once again dream of a future. Quite simply, transplantation restores life. Your decision to become an organ and tissue donor can
save or enhance the lives of up to 50 people.
Read the full release
Let’s Show ‘Em Michigan’s
Got More Heart
University of Michigan's Students for Organ Donation (SOD) chapter teams up with Gift of Life Michigan to beat the Ohio State Buckeyes through signed organ donor registrations
As the countdown clock ticks and the big game day gets closer and closer, Michigan students and residents prepare to tackle a slow start to the Buckeye vs. Wolverine Challenge for Life. The 2nd annual rivalry officially began Sept. 1, 2007, and will run through noon on Nov. 16, 2007.
To sign up and show your support, click here.
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17 Michigan hospitals receive Organ Donation Medal of Honor from HHS; three transplant centers join new Collaborative
Nashville, Tennessee, October 10, 2007 – Seventeen Michigan hospitals and medical centers have been awarded Organ Donation Medals of Honor from the U.S. Department of Health & Human
Services for their success in raising organ donation rates.
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17 Michigan hospitals to receive Organ Donation Medal of
Honor from U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
Ann Arbor , October 4, 2007 – Seventeen Michigan hospitals and medical centers will be recognized for their success in raising organ donation rates with a U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Medal of Honor.
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Gift of Life Michigan will honor more than a thousand organ and tissue donors from last year at the upcoming annual Betty Buckley Donor Family Ceremony on September 30, 2007
Ann Arbor, MI— Sept. 26, 2007— Michigan donor families will share their favorite memories and healing thoughts later this month at Gift of Life Michigan’s 15 th annual Betty Buckley Donor Family Ceremony. Many will bring a personalized quilt square to add to a Michigan Donor Family Quilt, a tactile remembrance of their loved ones. All will pay tribute to the donors who gave life and hope to others last year. The ceremony will begin at 3 p.m. Sunday, September 30, 2007, at the Michigan State University Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center in East Lansing.
Read the full release
We remember and honor the University of Michigan Survival Flight team members who died trying to save a life on June 4, 2007
Our hearts go out to the families, friends and coworkers of:
David Ashburn, M.D.
Fellow in Cardiothoracic Surgery
Richard Chenault II
Transplant Donation Specialist
Dennis Hoyes
Marlin Air pilot
Rick Lapensee
Transplant Donation Specialist
Bill Serra
Marlin Air pilot
Martinus (Martin) Spoor, M.D.
Cardiac Surgeon
Tom Beyersdorf, executive director of Gift of Life Michigan, shared this statement on the announcement of the double-lung transplant patient recovering at the U-M Transplant Center.
For more information on the U-M Survival Flight tragedy, please visit www.med.umich.edu/ survival_flight/update/index.html
To honor these brave heroes and their noble mission, sign up on the Michigan Organ Donor Registry.
Click here for a statement from the United Network for Organ Sharing, regarding the Lake Michigan plane accident.
For more information on data that pertain to the transplant waiting list, organ donation and matching, and transplantation data reports, click here.
For reports on activities at each transplant center and organ recovery organization in the United States, including statistics about organ donation and recovery, waitlist activity and post transplant outcomes, click here.
For more information about organ donation and transplants, click here.
A previous statement from Tom Beyersdorf, on the tragic loss of life on June 4,
can be found here.
