Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network is a not-for-profit organ procurement organization that coordinates organ and tissue donation and provides public education on donation in Illinois and northwest Indiana. As one of 58 OPOs that make up the nation’s donation system, we work with 180 hospitals and serve 12 million people in our donation service area. Since 1986, we have saved the lives of more than 23,000 organ transplant recipients and improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of tissue transplant recipients through our efforts. “First I am a mom. I have three wonderful kids that are pretty amazing and I have been married for 21 years. I just finished my masters degree, which I am very excited about. I work in organ donation which is a pretty amazing field. ”
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What inspired you or led you to your current profession? | I landed in this career by accident, I thought I was going to work ministry for a profession. My BS degree is a mixture of business and religion. A good friend of mine works in the donation industry and really sold me on working here. I had a great fear of death at the time and it didn’t sound like something that I was going to be interested in, but God tends to push me in a direction of what I am scared of until I face them and am no longer afraid. It was God that pushed me towards a career that I would never in a million years have sought out. |
| Tell me more about Gift of Hope. | Gift of Hope is an organ procurement organization. There are several throughout the United States, with some states having a couple in them. Illinois is covered, except the southern tip, and part of Northwest Indiana is serviced by Gift of Hope. We are notified when the patient is dying and we offer the family the option of donation, if the patient is eligible. It is a common misconception that everyone can be an organ donor, but that is not the case. There is only a small amount of patient population that can be a donor. We will work with the patient and their family throughout the process of organ donation. We also work with families for tissue donation, which occurs after death. |
| How long have you lived or worked in Champaign-Urbana? | I moved here when I was 17 in the late 1990’s, being been born here we moved away when I was quite little. After graduation, I lived with my grandmother and met and fell in love with my husband, and we have lived here ever since. |
| What is your favorite restaurant here in Champaign-Urbana? | We are extremely blessed here in Champaign-Urbana with a lot of great places to eat. Here in St Joe, I love the Wheel House. The food is local based, and I love the philosophy. Their menu changes, with meals that you do not find in other places. In Champaign, Seven Saints is my go to. They just have great food. |
| Who is the most interesting person you have met in Champaign-Urbana? | Gosh, I have met A LOT of interesting people. Not only with the families of the patients I work with, but at the hospitals as well. |
| If you could travel anywhere in the world at this time, where would it be? | I think one day I would like to travel to Europe, my mother-in-law was born in Hungary, so my Husband and I would like to travel to see the area where she grew up and where their family is from. Ireland with the green grasses would also be on the list, I love nature. |
| What advice would you give a crowd of people? | In the world we live in today, people often forget to be kind and that we all have a responsibility to be leaders among our sphere of influence. This looks like helping others, being kind and listening to people, showing others what being good really looks like. Even more so when the people in your sphere are hard to work with. |
| What is on your bucket list? | I don’t have a bucket list. I am creative and when I find something that I want to do, I try really hard to make it happen. Traveling to Europe would be something that I want to make happen. |
| What is your favorite thing or something unique about Champaign-Urbana? | The parks in Champaign are so phenomenal. People who have been raised up here have no idea what treasure they have in the Park District. It’s so amazing, especially when I had small children, we could go to a well kept and safe park for a while. |
| Where will be in 5 to 10 years? | Simply, where ever God takes me. With having a new degree and my youngest graduating high school next year, I am at a point to where I can feel free to tell God, yes I will do something new. |
| What is something interested get that most people do not know about you? | I am pretty much an open book. There is not a lot about myself that my friends or family do not know about me. |
| What three words or phrases come to mind when you think of the word HOME? | Comfort, Family and Peace. |
| If you had a full time staff member that was fully paid for, who would you choose? Chef, Housekeeper, Driver, Coach, Trainer or Nanny? | Can I combine two into one? If I had just one full time person helping me, I would choose the chef. I love to cook, but at the end of the day, figuring out the menu is the worst decision that I have to make every day. Since I am not a planner, making a menu is quite daunting. Definitely not a driver, I love to drive! |
