The Gifted Life: Organ, Tissue and Eye Donation Podcast

Show Notes: On this episode of The Gifted Life, we delve into the history of the Donate Life Rose Parade Float. The float rolls every year during the Rose Parade in Pasadena, and we talk to Kathleen Hostert, Donate Life Rose Parade Manager. Learn how this huge project started so many years ago, how a theme is chosen for the float each year, how it's designed and decorated, and how you can take part by dedicating a rose. Then hear from Julie Castille, mom of Kelly Theriot, and Hans Nelson, father of Christian Nelson, who are the Louisiana 2018 Floragraph honorees. Listen to us honor Hero Jennifer “Cotton” Newman, and answer a listener's question on this episode.

Show Notes: The Gifted Life Podcast team invites you to take a journey with us during this special episode. This trip will take you from Louisiana to Texas, brings in ties from Iowa and right onto the stage of the nationwide phenomenon of NASCAR. Hear how the Donate Life message races by to honor heroes and register more organ, eye and tissue donors, and we honor Hero James Melton.

Show Notes: Our hosts welcome LOPA Research Manager, Tina Madere, and Dr. Deborah Mash of the University of Miami Brain Endowment Bank for a fascinating conversation about how donation for research, namely brain donation, supports the next generation. Research on Autism, Alzheimer's, PTSD, stress, anxiety and other mental health disorders stagnates without crucial brain donations. Dr. Mash calls the donors, along with their families, Citizen Scientists for their Gifts. Sally also shares new research which encourages older adults to step out of their comfort zone and learn new things to help keep brain pathways firing on all cylinders. We answer a listener’s question about registration and donation for research, plus honor Hero Colton Crum right here on episode 57 of The Gifted Life Podcast.

Show Notes: May is Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month and we are dedicating this episode to lung donation and transplantation. We start with the highlights of some great moments during National Donate Life Month, which include stories about New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, and an update on Jarrius “Little JJ” Robertson’s wait for a liver. Dr. Rampolla, head of the lung transplant program at Ochsner, talks to our hosts about his work and the triumph of saving lives. Then we talk to Sandra Brown, whose daughter became a donor in 1994, and how she waited 20 years to meet her lung recipient. Plus, Mrs. Sandra honors her daughter, Catrina Johnson, and you can hear a voicemail from a grateful mother of a Cystic Fibrosis patient who is urging listeners to register as a donor. Hear what she has to say, and more, on episode 56 of The Gifted Life Podcast.

Show Notes: On episode 55 of The Gifted Life Podcast we welcome Dr. Christine Durand back to the microphone and hear about expanding options for potential kidney recipients. A new medicine is curing Hepatitis C and it’s providing a way for more donors to save lives. Dr. Durand tells us about the Expander 1 project. Then we talk to a kidney recipient who participated in one of these pilot trials. Her experience is a testimony to how Hepatitis C donors can help save more lives than ever before. In our favorite part of the podcast, we honor Hero Steve Melancon, and then we answer a listener’s question right here on episode 55 of The Gifted Life Podcast.

Show Notes: On episode 54 of The Gifted Life Podcast, we are talking about new HOPE, namely the HOPE Act. The HOPE Act, enacted into law in 2013, paves the way for people living with HIV to become organ donors to potential recipients living with HIV. Dr. Christine Durand chats with our hosts about HOPE in Action, a research study piloted out of John Hopkins University that puts the HOPE Act into practice and is saving more lives. We then welcome in studio guest Dorian Gray Alexander. Dorian hosts a radio show, Proof Positive, is an advocate for the HIV+ community, and a member of a popular male dance group in New Orleans called the 610 Stompers. He talks with hosts about the implications of the HOPE Act and even teaches them some dance move during a break! We honor Hero Anthony Eichmann, talk about getting ready for National Blue and Green Day, and run into a two-time Superbowl champ with the Giants, who's raising awareness about the need for more registered organ, eye & tissue donors. Don’t miss this action packed episode of The Gifted Life Podcast.

Show Notes: April is National Donate Life Month and on episode 53 of The Gifted Life Podcast we are opening the archives with LOPA’s Director of Clinical Excellence, Michelle Duvernay. Hear how organ procurement has evolved since the first transplant of a kidney in 1954. We journey from a 1980s world of pen and paper, sparse fax machines and pagers, to the technology that has revolutionized saving lives in America. Our hosts wrap up the discussion with Michelle and welcome Wade Liu. Wade is Vice President of Product Development for Transplant Connect and a self-professed HUGE fan of The Gifted Life Podcast. He tells us about the software his company has developed to assist in streamlining organ recovery and transplantation. Plus, Sally and Wade talk about how this software also assists in supporting donor families after their loved one has given the Gift of Life. Lori and the rest of The Gifted Life team honor Hero Tina Brown, and we answer a listener’s question about connecting donor families and recipients. We are gearing up for National Donate Life Month celebrations like Blue and Green Day and hope you will join us!

Show Notes:On episode 52 of The Gifted Life Podcast, we are talking about eye donation for National Eye Donor Month. We launch this episode with Jason Woody, CEO of Lion’s Eye Institute for Transplant and Research and Chair for Donate Life America. Hear how LEITR is not only restoring sight through eye donation, but also conducting research to battle eye diseases. Ever wonder what a patient needing a cornea transplant goes through? LEITR’s Medical Director Dr. Lewis Groden educates about a recipient’s journey before, during and after cornea donation. Followed by donor mother, Dawn Futch, who tells our hosts how her family honored a decision that her son made to be an organ, eye and tissue donor, and the importance their family puts on continuing to give back to others. Plus, Dawn tells us more about her son, Michael-Gene Futch, and how he finally got his wish to see Africa. Guest and recipient, Samantha Shoemaker, takes our call to help answer a listener’s question about cornea donation with her first hand knowledge, right here on episode 52 of The Gifted Life Podcast.

Show Notes: Have you ever wondered about how “The List” works? We have referred to the waiting list in several episodes and asked Mike Pressendo, Director of Communications at United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), to explain how it all works. Mike also talks about an amazing new video UNOS created, How to Rock a Bucket List and Save a Life, and the real life stories it was based on. Next we welcome in studio guest, Ricky Fernandez, a transplant social worker with Tulane Medical Center. Hear about the myriad of services a transplant social worker provides to help patients, families and caregivers work through the transplant process. We honor one of the Heroes that inspired UNOS’ Bucket List video, Kristina Chesterman, and answer a listener’s question right here on episode 51 of The Gifted Life Podcast.

Show Notes: We have reached episode 50 of The Gifted Life Podcast. This is BIG! Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts and her sister, WWLTV’s Sally-Ann Roberts, are here to share their story with us! The sisters made headlines when Sally-Ann donated her bone marrow cells to save Robin’s life. Learn more about how this duo “makes their mess their message” and teaches the world about selfless acts of donation. Learn all about registering as a bone marrow donor as Lori, Joey and Sally are joined by Mary Halet from Be The Match, the national bone marrow registry. Discover the differences between registering as an organ, eye and tissue donor and a bone marrow donor. Mary also dispels some myths about bone marrow donation, she educates us about the process, and chats about services and resources provided to both recipients and donors. We honor two Heroes in our Honoring a Hero segment. Hear about two friends who signed up on the Be The Match registry, and saved the lives of two strangers. Help The Gifted Life Podcast team celebrate episode 50 by sharing with your friends and encouraging them to subscribe so they don’t miss an episode.