A tree-planting ceremony to honor organ donors and recipients
will be held Sept. 30 in Ainsworth as part of “The Tree of Life” campaign
being sponsored by the University of Nebraska Medical Center and the Nebraska
Health System. A total of 24 Nebraska cities will hold tree-planting events
over the next 12 months as part of the campaign, which is designed to raise
the awareness level for organ donation.
The Ainsworth event is open to the public and will begin at 11:30
a.m. at the downtown courthouse, 148 W. 4th St. Among those participating
in the program will be organ donors and recipients from Ainsworth, Cody,
Crookston, Johnstown, Kilgore, Springview, Valentine and Wood Lake. The
public also is invited to attend an educational presentation on organ donation
that will be held at 9 a.m. in the Learning Center at Ainsworth Community
High School. UNMC and NHS representatives will make the presentation.
Dennis Reinke of Frontier Land Care in Ainsworth is donating and
planting the tree, which will be a Colorado blue spruce. A permanent plaque
will be planted at the base of the tree commemorating the event. After
the ceremony, the 4-H Council will provide a lunch at the Ainsworth Chamber
of Commerce, 335 N. Main St. Lunch will be $4 per person with proceeds
benefitting the 4-H Council. All transplant recipients have been encouraged
to bring a photograph that will be used in a “Tree of Life” display during
the holiday season at Brown County Hospital and the Ainsworth Chamber of
Commerce.
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,” said Kevin Warneke, associate director
of public affairs and one of the coordinators of the event.
Other communities holding ceremonies for “The Tree of Life” campaign
include: Beatrice, Broken Bow, Chadron, Columbus, Fremont, Grand Island,
Hastings, Holdrege, Kearney, Kimball, Lincoln, McCook, Neb. City, Norfolk,
North Platte, Omaha, O’Neill, Petersburg, Scottsbluff, Sidney, S. Sioux
City, Valentine and York.
In each community, organ donors and recipients and their families
have been 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
also have been 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.”
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 innovative 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.
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. More than
$27 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.