A tree-planting ceremony to honor organ donors and recipients will be
held April 20 in McCook as part of “The Tree of Life” campaign being sponsored
by the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Nebraska Health
System. Twenty-three Nebraska communities are participating in the tree-planting
campaign, which is designed to raise the awareness level for organ and
tissue donation. Twelve communities held events in 1998 with the remaining
communities holding events this spring.
The McCook event is open to the public and will begin at 2:30 p.m.
at Norris Park. McCook Mayor Flora Lundberg and Gary Bieganski, president
of Community Hospital of McCook, will be among the participants. Several
organ and tissue donor family members and organ recipients from the area
have been invited to attend. In addition, representatives of the McCook
Area Chapter 2769 of the Fraternal Order of Eagles will be on hand. The
Eagles have provided funding for furnishing the two children’s playrooms
in The Lied Transplant Center, which opened earlier this year on the UNMC/NHS
campus.
In conjunction with the tree planting, an educational presentation
about organ and tissue donation will be made to the Community Hospital
staff at 1 p.m. Byers W. Shaw, Jr., M.D., professor and chairman of UNMC’s
surgery department and the person who started UNMC’s liver transplant program
in 1985, will make the presentation.
Vap’s Seed & Hardware, Inc. in McCook will donate and plant the
tree, which will be a Norway maple . A permanent plaque will be planted
at the base of the tree commemorating the event.
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 for UNMC and one of the two coordinators of the campaign.
Other communities holding ceremonies for “The Tree of Life” campaign
include:
Ainsworth Beatrice
Broken Bow Chadron
Columbus Fremont
Grand Island
Hastings Holdrege
Kearney
Lincoln Neb.
City Norfolk
North Platte
Omaha O’Neill
Petersburg Scottsbluff
Sidney S. Sioux City
Valentine
York
People may participate in the ceremony by giving a personal testimonial,
reading an original poem or singing a song. These activities will highlight
the importance of organ and tissue donation.
“The decision for organ donation comes at a time when a family begins
to realize their
lives will continue without someone they love,” said Kolleen Thompson,
manager of organ recovery services for NHS and the other coordinator 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. The 14-level building features 44 patient care suites as well as
considerable space devoted to transplant research. Patients staying at
the center take part in 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,
Dr. Shaw said.
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 $34 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 first hospital in
Nebraska, and University Hospital, the primary teaching facility for UNMC.
NHS operates 23 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 hospital is an 835-bed facility and serves
approximately 25 percent of the Omaha-area market share.