A series of 22 tree plantings will be held in communities
throughout Nebraska during the next 12 months in an effort to
recognize organ donors and recipients while raising the awareness
level for organ donation.
"The Tree of Life" campaign is being sponsored by
the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Nebraska Health
System.
The "Tree of Life" symbolizes the new life organ
donation has brought to those who were dying from end-stage organ
failure and those who have given the "gift of life."
Ceremonies will be held this spring, fall and next spring.
They will be held in:
Ainsworth Beatrice Broken Bow Chadron Columbus Fremont
Grand Island Hastings Holdrege Kearney Lincoln McCook
Nebraska City Norfolk North Platte Sidney Omaha O’Neill
Scottsbluff S. Sioux City Valentine York
Organ donors and recipients, and their families from each
community and the surrounding area will be invited to attend.
They may participate in the ceremony by giving a personal
testimonial, reading an original poem or singing a song. These
ceremonies will highlight the importance of organ donation. City
officials will be asked to participate.
"The decision for organ and tissue donation comes at a
time when a family begins to realize their lives will continue
without someone they love," said Kolleen Thompson, organ
procurement coordinator for the Nebraska Health System and one of
the coordinators of the campaign. "It takes true courage and
compassion to donate your loved one’s organs. The new life
that results for the organ recipient is something that will never
be forgotten."
In conjunction with each tree-planting event, an educational
presentation to local organizations, schools or clubs will be
held. In addition, a permanent plaque will be planted at the base
of the tree commemorating the event, said Kevin Warneke,
associate director of UNMC’s Public Affairs Department and
the other coordinator of the campaign.
The campaign will help UNMC and NHS create awareness of The
Lied Transplant Center, which is scheduled to open at the end of
this year on the UNMC/NHS campus. The 14-level building will
feature 44 patient care suites as well as considerable space
devoted to transplant research. Patients staying at the center
will be part of an inovative cooperative care delivery system in
which family or friends serve as care partners for the basic care
needs of patients receiving solid organ or bone marrow
transplants.
Despite UNMC/NHS’s stature as a leading transplant
center, Nebraska only ranks No. 24 among all states in producing
donors based on population, said Byers W. Shaw, Jr., M.D.,
professor and chairman of the UNMC Department of Surgery and an
organ transplant surgeon.
All the trees for the "Tree of Life" campaign will
be donated by Earl May Nursery and Garden Centers. In addition,
local Earl May representatives will donate their services to
plant the trees in many of the 22 communities.
UNMC is the only public academic health science center in the
state. Through its commitment to research, education and patient
care, UNMC has established itself as one of the country’s leading
centers for cancer research and treatment and solid organ
transplantation. Nearly $25 million in research grants and
contracts are awarded to UNMC scientists annually. In addition,
UNMC’s educational programs are responsible for training more
health professionals practicing in Nebraska than any other
institution.
NHS is the partnership of Clarkson Hospital, the oldest
hospital in Nebraska, and University Hospital, the primary
teaching facility for UNMC. NHS operates 29 clinics and health
care centers serving Omaha, Plattsmouth, Gretna and Auburn in
Nebraska; Council Bluffs and Shenandoah in Iowa. In addition, NHS
operates more than 350 outpatient clinics in 50 communities in
four states. The combined NHS system serves approximately 25
percent of the Omaha-area market share.