There is now a version of this book in Braille which is free to the blind.

Today, approximately twelve more people will die while waiting for an organ.
Each day 11-13 people die while waiting for a life-saving organ, because a donation decision hasn't been made, not because there are not enough organs available.

Have you been searching for information from the donor's point of view regarding organ donation? Do you have questions burning in your mind and heart about organ donation? Are you frustrated, as many others are, that you haven't been able to find these answers? Are you frustrated that you haven't been able to read about the actual experience of donation?

Recipients Do you or someone you know need a transplant? Are you considering asking a loved one to be a donor and don’t know how to broach the subject? Do others understand your need for privacy?

Donors Do individuals ever ask you what it’s like to be an organ donor? Can you describe donation to them from your own experience?

Donor Families Was organ donation discussed in your family before your gift? Do you discuss it now?

Transplant Professionals Would it be useful to you, in your professional work, to have an "inside," real-life view of one family's personal experience with organ donation?

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Do you want to know such things as:

• How will we decide who will be the donor

• What are the surgery and tissue typing like

• Will there be restrictions on the donor's or recipient's life

• How will I pay for the transplant

• How long will I be off work

• Will the families be allowed to meet one another

• Will a transplant be a cure or will the recipient have to stay on medication

It's time for you to get the answers to your questions. I had the same frustrating experience of not being able to find my answers, and realized that there was a need to be filled. The result is the light-hearted, no holds barred book about my experience as a living donor. This book is for all those individuals who are interested in organ donation.

This is the extraordinary story of an ordinary family caught in a life or death struggle to save one of their own. With the possibility of a sibling becoming a living organ donor, this courageous family had to face the fact that they could lose not one, but two members.

During the process of becoming a donor, I discovered that there was no information to be found concerning the donors' point of view. This book has become the resource for those families considering organ donation and those who have already donated. Even though it is told from the donor's point of view, recipients will find answers also.

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More than 61,000 Americans are currently waiting for that life-saving organ. Only 19% of our population have truly decided not to donate. The number of organ donors each year remains at approximately 5,000. The rest of the population has not made a decision. While 89% of the U.S. population is in favor of organ donation, only one in four actually consent to donation.

Whether your decision is "Yes" or "No," make an informed decision and let loved ones know what that decision is. It's right at the critical time of transplantation that vital donations are often lost; because even though the individual has decided to donate, they have not chosen an advocate to make sure the donation happens.

Organ Donation is just a check mark away:

• Make a decision and discuss that decision with your family
• Check the appropriate box on you donor card--contact Transweb
(You can also check at your local Secretary of State's office, and ask for the sticker that goes on the back of your driver's license)

Now, let people know how you feel!

For more detailed information see my Questions & Answers page.

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Many individuals ask my husband, Jerry, and myself questions regarding our experience as an organ donor and spouse of an organ donor. You may find our responses on my Question and Answer page.

This book has been endorsed by members of the following organizations to name a few:
(UNOS), The United Network for Organ Sharing
The National Kidney Foundation of Wisconsin
The National Donor Family Council
The University of Wisconsin-Madison Medical School

Be sure to visit my Endorsements page, and read what professional individuals such as the following are saying:
Meg Black, Director of Communications, UNOS (United Network for Organ Sharing)
Dr. David T. Ueling, Professor of Surgery, Chairman, Division of Urology, University of Wisconsin Madison Medical School
Cindy Huber, Executive Director, National Kidney Foundation of Wisconsin

Then read the Back of Book Endorsements by:
Margret B. Coolican, RN, MS, Chair, National Donor Family Council,
Allan Rosa, MD, Associate Professor of Surgery, Department of Transplant Surgery, Medical College of Wisconsin
Hans W. Sollinger, ND, Ph.D; Chairman, Division of Organ Transplantation, University of Wisconsin Madison Medical School

Individuals, such as yourself, are also talking about how the book has helped them find the answers that they have been searching for. Read the touching letters that the author has received from some of these indviduals at Personal Recommendations.

Jerry and I went to the US Transplant Games in Columbus, Ohio, which was held at Columbus College. The courage and energy of the recipients/atheletes was awe inspiring. I went there expecting to see a lot of sick people, but all I saw was people celebrating life. The US Games take place every two years. I would suggest that anyone who has the opportunity to go to one of these "happenings," don't miss it.

Don't make up your mind about ordering the book until you have read Excerpts from it.

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