University student leads a heartwarming effort to save lives
By Daniel Stern
Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Death is something that most students choose not to think about or, at least, talk about. But when confronted with the opportunity to help save a life, one University student changed her tune.
Fourth-year College student Isabel Otero founded the University's chapter of the College Campaign for Organ Donation last April as part of a national organization that 1999 College graduate Catherine Pollack founded two years ago. Together, Pollack and Religious Studies Professor James Childress started CCOD to increase awareness of organ donation among college students between the ages of 18 and 24, the group has shown to be the least informed about donations. It constitutes the smallest group of organ donors in the country.
To help change that, Otero and the CCOD will hold an informational seminar tomorrow at 7 p.m. in Minor Hall auditorium. "Conceptions of the Heart: The Personal Triumphs of Organ Donation" will feature a panel that includes various members of the University who have been personally involved with organ donation. Some of the guests scheduled to attend include liver recipient Dr. David Pollock, whose daughter Catherine founded the CCOD; Seth Kramer, a double-lung recipient and a 1995 College graduate; and Ross Isaacs, medical director of the Multi-Organ Transplant Clinic at the University Health Sciences Center.
According to Otero, the primary goal of the panel is to foster an understanding and appreciation of organ and tissue donation among the audience by giving personal testimonies.
"I always thought that it was something worthwhile, but I don't think I truly understood it until I started meeting people who were directly affected by donations," Otero said. "There is a lot that you miss by not having that personal experience and insight. It makes such a difference when we do a lot of education."
Following the panel's testimonies, the audience will have the opportunity to ask any questions that might help them in gaining additional knowledge about the live-saving gifts of organ and tissue donation.
"It's worth taking a minute because you can realize the miracle of organ donations and how it can change lives," Otero said. "There are people who have been given a second chance at life because someone took the moment to sign a donor card. It has made a huge difference to a lot of people at the University"
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