Thursday, April 29, 2010

Astellas Ride of a Lifetime Contest


It’s almost time to submit entries for the 6th annual Astellas Ride of a Lifetime contest! Five transplant recipients will win a five-night trip for two to California to ride on the Donate Life float during the Rose Parade on January 1, 2011.

The contest is limited to liver, kidney and heart recipients currently taking Prograf. Entrants must be at least 13 years old. One winner per geographical region (Northeast, Southeast, Mid-America, Great Lakes and Western) will be selected.

To enter, recipients must submit an essay of no more than 500 words describing how their lives were transformed by transplantation. All entries must be accompanied by a photo of the entrant.

For more information, or to submit your essay online, please visit TransplantExperience.com. Deadline is 11:59 p.m. EDT on June 25, 2010 for online entries.

If submitting by mail, please send typed essay to Astellas Ride of a Lifetime, 111 E. Wacker Drive, 11th floor, Chicago, IL 60601, postmarked no later than June 25. Winners will be notified by phone and mail.

We would be happy to help proof/edit essays for any NFT patients. If you would like us to review them prior to submission, please e-mail to info@transplants.org by June 1.

Thursday, April 22, 2010

April Patient of the Month: Terri deBruin

In 2004, Terri first noticed troubling symptoms, such as redness and swelling in her hands. After a local rheumatologist reviewed her records, symptoms and blood tests, she immediately knew something was wrong. Terri soon learned she was suffering from systemic scleroderma, an autoimmune disease causing her immune system to attack her body, especially her lungs. Doctors have told Terri a lung transplant is essential to her survival.

A devoted wife and mother of two, Terri is determined to overcome this disease so she can spend many more years with her family and see her children get married and have children of their own. Terri loves to scrapbook and do other crafts and is thankful she can still enjoy these activities. She looks forward to being well enough travel to museums and zoos and stay outdoors in the heat, which she loves.

A lung transplant costs approximately $450,000. And that's only the beginning. Even with health insurane, Terri faces significant medical expenses. For the rest of her life, she will need follow-up care and daily anti-rejection medications. The cost of post-transplant medications can range from $2,000 to $5,000 per month--and they are as critical to her survival as the transplant itself.

To learn more about Terri or to make a donation to directly assist with her transplant expenses, visit her web bio on the NFT website.

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

NFT Patient Has Brisket Dinner Fundraiser

Last weekend, volunteers held a brisket dinner in honor of NFT patient Ray Ramirez. Ray is awaiting a lifesaving liver transplant because of a tainted blood transfusion he received in 1989. The event was a huge success, raising more than $2,000 to assist with Ray's transplant-related expenses.

If you and your volunteers are thinking of planning a fundraiser in the future, consider holding a dinner like Ray's at a local school, church or community center.


Supporters enjoying a delicious dinner!

Jackie Allen, a volunteer for Ray's fundraising campaign.

Victoria Alvarado collecting tickets at the door.

Chris Rojas thanking everyone for attending the dinner.

To see more photos from the brisket dinner in honor of Ray, visit the NFT Facebook page.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Dish It Out 2010

On April 8, ten Memphis-area restaurants participated in our first-ever Dish It Out event by donating a percentage of their profits to NFT. Thank you to everyone who had lunch or dinner at one of the fabulous participating restaurants!

Special thanks to the following restaurants who were generous enough to 'Dish It Out' for NFT!

Book club friends gathered for a girls' night out at Restaurant Iris!

Jamie, Mandy, Jessica and Sean with Chef Kelly English at Restaurant Iris.

Chef Kelly English of Restaurant Iris with a group of NFT supporters.

The Stopher family at McAlister's in Collierville.

NFT staff members enjoying lunch at Amerigo.

Shali, NFT's director of development, and Ed Galfsky at Interim.

To see more photos from Dish It Out, visit the NFT Facebook page!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

The American Transplant Foundation Urges You to “Show Us Your Heart!”

The American Transplant Foundation (ATF), a nonprofit organization that strives to eliminate our country's shortage of transplant organs, wants to know why YOU support organ and tissue donation.

In celebration of National Donate Life Month, ATF and Donate Life Colorado present the “Show Us Your Heart” video contest. They are looking for videos that convey the importance of organ and tissue donation and include factual information about organ donation and/or transplantation. For video contest rules and submission information, click here.

Submit your video before April 23, and you could win a $100 Visa gift card.

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

$5,000 GoodSearch Giveaway

GoodSearch will donate $1 for every toolbar that is downloaded between April 6 at 9 a.m. (EST) and April 9 at 9 a.m. (EST) up to $5,000! Click here to download the GoodSearch Toolbar.

Our NFT toolbar is free to download and allows you to raise money for our cause every time you search or shop online! Once added to IE or Firefox, each time you shop at more than 1,300 stores (from Amazon to Zazzle!) a percentage of your purchase will automatically be donated to NFT—at no cost to you. You can even save money as the toolbar provides coupons and deals as well! The toolbar also has a search box, and each time you search the Internet, about a penny is donated to NFT.

Please hurry and do this now so that we can earn the $1 bonus per toolbar! Please pass this along to all of your friends. The two minutes it takes to add this toolbar to your browser can make a lifetime of difference for our organization!

Click here to get the GoodSearch Toolbar NOW!

Lastly, in case you haven't seen it yet, here's what the customized toolbar looks like...

Monday, April 5, 2010

April is National Donate Life Month

Did You Know?

  • As of April 5, there were 106,742 Americans awaiting lifesaving transplants.
  • More than 84,000 Americans need a kidney transplant to survive, but last year only 16,829 kidney transplants were performed.
  • 18 people die every day while waiting for a transplant.
  • 1 organ donor can save 8 lives and change the lives of more than 50 people.
  • Almost anyone can be an organ donor, regardless of age or medical history.
  • All major religions in the U.S. support organ donation.
  • Organ donors can still have open casket funerals.
  • Donors are needed for all races and ethnic groups.
  • Transplant success rates increase when organs are matched between members of the same ethnic background.
  • Organ donation does not cost the donor’s family any money
Are YOU an organ donor? To learn more about organ donation or to register as an organ donor, accept the NFT Transplant Challenge.