Making the Connection
The morning’s keynote speaker, Kasey Johnson, is a survivor
of the Columbine shootings who received donated tissue to
heal her arm after a shotgun slug nearly led to amputation.
As Johnson shared her experience, images of that horrific day
flashed on the screen behind her, but that was not the end of
her story.
“Every day, I am blessed to hold my children in both arms,”
she says, “and that is because of the gift of donation.”
(l to r) Constituent Relations Administrator Cydney
DeModica, Public Information Officer Ryan Harding, East
Central Region Manager Anne Yanofsky and Driver License
Specialist Madelene Carbajal take a group picture at DNA’s
Donation Celebration on Sept. 21.
A
t Donor Network of Arizona’s (DNA) annual
Donation Symposium on Monday, Sept. 21,
attendees from throughout the state and across
a range of professions converged on the Desert Willow
Conference Center in Phoenix to learn about organ and tissue
donation in Arizona.
This year’s theme, “Making the Connection,” focused on
linking the work done by DNA with the efforts of health
care and community partners to save and heal lives through
donation. Breakout sessions throughout the day served as
continuing education classes that allowed diverse partners to
strengthen their knowledge of donation and transplantation.
The highlight of the day’s events was a lunchtime award
ceremony called the Donation Celebration. During the
ceremony, champions for donation were recognized
for their work in a variety of fields. Ryan Harding of the
Office of Public Information for the Arizona Department
of Transportation received the award for Outstanding
Government Agency Employee.
Harding’s efforts in sharing the importance of donation
and showcasing the Arizona Department of Transportation
Motor Vehicle Division’s partnership with DNA reached wide
audiences in the past year through his dedicated work to
promote checking the box for the DonateLifeAZ Registry
with media.
“It’s truly an honor to be recognized by a great organization
like Donor Network of Arizona,” says Harding. “The Motor
Vehicle Division values its partnership with Donor Network
in making it easy for people to register to become organ and
tissue donors.”
YOLO Means More
M
ore than 3,000 Arizona
college students made the
decision to “make YOLO
mean more” by registering as organ, eye
and tissue donors during Donate Life
Arizona’s 2015 Campus Challenge. The
annual campaign offers college students
the important opportunity to learn about
donation and register as donors early in
the school year.
This year’s Campus Challenge champion
was Arizona State University (ASU),
registering 1,221 students as donors.
“I was amazed at how many students
were interested enough to stop and
check it out and then sign up,” says
Valerie Jipner, a Donate Life Arizona
volunteer and liver recipient who
attended a Campus Challenge event at
ASU’s welcome week.
In August and September, Donate Life
Arizona staffed registration booths at
ASU, Grand Canyon University (GCU),
University of Arizona (UA), Northern
Arizona University (NAU) and Midwestern
University (MWU) during the schools’
Welcome Weeks, which are vendor, club
and activity fairs that offer students the
opportunity to get involved with their
schools and communities.
Placing second in the Campus Challenge
was UA with 583 registrations. GCU
landed in third with 541 registrations.
NAU was close behind in fourth with 506
registrations, and MWU placed fifth with
40 students registering as donors.
Three ASU student volunteers proudly display their
YOLO tank tops during Campus Challenge on Aug.
19, 2015.
The popular slogan, YOLO, which refers
to the phrase, “You Only Live Once,” was
transformed to “Your Organs Live On,”
and printed on tank tops that students
received for registering as donors.
The thousands of students participating
in the 2015 Campus Challenge made
YOLO mean more through their generous
decision to register as organ, eye and
tissue donors.
Registering to be an Organ and Tissue Donor
at the Motor Vehicle Division:
Behind the
1
The client checks the box on their DL/ID application. Their
decision is entered into ADOT MVD computer system.
A temporary credential is issued for the client featuring
the insignia. The insignia is also printed on the
permanent credential sent to the client in the mail several
weeks later.
2
Each week, the ADOT MVD computer system
provides Donor Network of Arizona with the
information of the clients who registered.
Donor Network of Arizona enters new registrants
into the DonateLifeAZ Registry while checking and
removing duplicates and updating addresses.
Within four to six weeks, all new registrants receive
a letter from Donor Network of Arizona detailing
how their decision can save and heal lives through
organ and tissue donation.
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4
5
What questions
about donation
do customers ask
you most often?
Send your questions to
[email protected]!
Contact Us:
For more information, please contact:
Claudia Flaherty at 602-222-2212
ADOT MVD
We Make the Most of Life
Connection
Winter 2015
A newsletter published by Donate Life Arizona
ADOT MVD Saves Lives Month
JOIN US
ONLINE!
Facebook.com/
DonateLifeAZ
@DonateLifeAZ
(l to r) ADOT and ADOT MVD staff members Ryan Harding, Stacy Guillen, Eric Jorgensen and Lisa Moore were presented
with a framed award by DNA staff members Claudia Flaherty, Sara Pace Jones and Tim Brown on Aug. 25, 2015.
YouTube.com/
DonateLifeAZ
Pinterest.com/
DonateLifeAZ
@DonateLifeAZ
Contributors:
Tim Brown
Robbie Glazner
Sara Pace Jones
Writers and Editors:
Katie Benton
Taylor Bishop
Alexa Haynes
Jacqueline Keidel
Kris Patterson
Ariana Peery
D
uring the month of August, Donor
Network of Arizona (DNA) hosted its
third annual celebration of its valued
partnership with the Arizona Department of
Transportation Motor Vehicle Division (ADOT MVD).
Beginning in 2013, DNA designated August as ADOT
MVD Saves Lives Month, due to the fact that one
organ donor has the potential to save up to eight
lives and August is the eighth month of the year.
ADOT MVD plays an extremely important role in the
donor registration process. Ninety-five percent of all
registered donors in Arizona made that life-saving
decision by checking the box on their driver license
or ID application at the ADOT MVD.
This year, DNA celebrated ADOT MVD Saves Lives
Month by delivering Fairytale Brownies to all ADOT
MVD departments across the state. ADOT MVD
also collaborated with DNA to share the story of
2011 liver and kidney donor, Michael Choppi, who
registered at the ADOT MVD before passing away,
through a touching video.
The video, which shared interviews with his parents,
Mike and Kim Choppi, was featured on ADOT’s
website and YouTube channel. On Friday, Aug.
21, DNA also hosted a luncheon for ADOT MVD
leadership where DNA presented them with a
framed award in recognition of the important work
ADOT MVD does for donation.
“Organ donation is one of the
most moving and impactful
gifts you can give someone,”
says ADOT MVD Director
Eric Jorgensen.
“We are proud to partner with a great organization
like Donor Network of Arizona to spread the word
about the importance of organ and tissue donation
and facilitate public participation.”
Greetings
A
From DNA’s President and CEO Tim Brown
s the number of Arizonans registering as organ, eye
and tissue donors continues to grow, I can’t help but
reflect on the important role the Arizona Department
of Transportation Motor Vehicle Division (ADOT MVD) plays in
the gift of donation and transplantation.
Each ADOT MVD employee is connected to saving and healing
lives by the work they do every day.
In 2015, as of Oct. 31, 41 percent of Arizona’s 140 organ donors
have been registered donors. Those individuals saved 159 lives
through organ donation. By offering customers a fast and
accessible way to sign up as donors, ADOT MVD gives Arizonans
an opportunity they may not otherwise have to register their
decision to share life.
Beyond offering the opportunity to register, ADOT MVD
employees themselves have many connections to donation.
Jimmie Willis, an ADOT MVD customer service representative,
received a life-saving heart transplant in June 2011.
Donor Network of Arizona (DNA) pays tribute to ADOT MVD’s
connection to donation during two dedicated months each year.
In August, DNA celebrates ADOT MVD Saves Lives Month in
recognition of the fact that 95 percent of registered donors sign
Tim Brown met with DNA’s Donation Celebration keynote speakers,
the Parker and Thompson families, on Sept. 21. The families share a
special bond through Addison Parker’s life-saving organ donation to
4-year-old Grant Thompson (second from right).
up through ADOT MVD. In November, DNA observes Give Thanks
to ADOT MVD, in gratitude for the countless lives saved and
healed by ADOT MVD efforts.
The reality is, every single day we are mindful of the work
the ADOT MVD partnership does to impact donation and
transplantation in Arizona.
With the number of registered donors in Arizona surpassing
2.6 million, DNA sends its deepest thanks to all ADOT MVD
employees for their work that saves and heals lives through
transplantation and gives peace to donor families who take
comfort in the legacy of selfless giving and generosity their
loved ones have left behind.
A New Kidney, a Special Gift
“I felt like the earth was swallowing me,” she says.
By November, Diego spent 10 hours per day on dialysis to do the
work his failing kidneys were unable to perform. His catheters
prevented him from playing his favorite sport, football, and his
nights were spent hooked up to the machine that kept him alive.
In June 2015, Diego was added to the national organ transplant
waiting list, and on Aug. 10, 2015, just two months after being
listed, Diego received a life-saving kidney transplant.
Diego Terán shows his Donate Life support at the Desayuno Done
Vida on July 31, 2015.
T
welve-year-old Diego Terán of Mesa had always been a
bit small for his age. His mother, Lupita Arnet, noticed
Diego wasn’t the same size as the other children. Arnet
didn’t think much of Diego’s height until a routine trip to the
doctor in October 2014 led to an emergency visit to Phoenix
Children’s Hospital. There, a specialist told Arnet her son needed
a kidney transplant.
Healthy and gaining strength each day, Diego says that his new
kidney likes him, but even at his young age, he wonders about
the person who gave him his gift.
“Thank you to the family who gave me my new kidney,” says
Diego. “I hope they want to meet me some day.”
Arnet also holds a special place in her heart for her son’s donor
family, who she one day hopes to meet.
“We understand the tragedy that must have happened for Diego
to receive this gift,” says Arnet. “We know the family is grieving,
but we are thankful, and we hope they find comfort.”
DonateLifeAZ Registry
(as of Oct. 31, 2015)
As of Oct. 31, 2015,
54%
41 percent of Arizona’s
organ donors have been
registered donors.
These registered
donors have saved
159 lives.
of adult Arizonans
are registered as
organ, eye and
tissue donors.
2,981
students registered as organ, eye and tissue donors
during the 2015 Campus Challenge.
1,221
583
541
Registrations
Registrations
Registrations
506
Registrations
40
Registrations
DID YOU
KNOW?
Mail in your completed crossword puzzle
to receive free Donate Life sunglasses!
More than 122,000 people
in the U.S. are waiting
to receive a life-saving
transplant.
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Mail original to:
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Donor Network of Arizona
Attn: Claudia Flaherty
201 W. Coolidge St.
Phoenix, AZ 85013-2710
16
__________________________________________
Name
__________________________________________
Address
__________________________________________
City
State
Zip
__________________________________________
Email
*Answers to this puzzle can be found throughout the newsletter.
across
down
5. ADOT MVD Saves Lives Month is celebrated in August because one
1. Donor Network of Arizona celebrated its _____ annual ADOT MVD Saves
organ donor can potentially save _____ lives.
Lives Month in August.
6. Kasey Johnson, a survivor of the _________ shootings, was the
2. This year, ADOT MVD shared the story of 2011 liver and kidney donor
keynote speaker for this year’s Donation Symposium.
Michael ______ in celebration of ADOT MVD Saves Lives Month.
10. The number of registered donors in _______ is more than
3. Donor Network of Arizona celebrates Give Thanks to ADOT MVD during
2.6 million.
the month of ________.
11. Arizona State University won this year’s Campus Challenge with
4. Champions for donation at the Donation Symposium were recognized at a
over 1,221 _____________.
lunchtime award ceremony called the Donation ___________.
15. Donor Network of Arizona celebrated ADOT MVD Saves Lives
7. Donor Network of Arizona transformed the popular slogan ____ for the
Month by delivering Fairytale ________ to all ADOT MVD departments
across the state.
16. For the 2015 Campus Challenge, Donor Network of Arizona
visited ____ different Arizona colleges.
annual Campus Challenge.
8. “Making the _________” was the theme for this year’s Donation Symposium.
9. Ryan _______ of the Office of Public Information for the ADOT MVD
received the award for Outstanding Government Agency Employee at the
Donation Celebration.
12. Diego Terán received his life-saving kidney transplant on ______ 10, 2015.
13. Kidney recipient Diego Terán is ______ years old.
14. More than 3,000 Arizona _______ students registered as organ, eye and
tissue donors at the 2015 Campus Challenge.