NATIONAL CAMPAIGN Raising awareness for organ donation

Those interested can register as an organ donor on the Web.
YOUNGSTOWN -- Flower bulbs aren't the only things waiting for new life this spring. April is designated National Donate Life Month to raise awareness about the critical need for organ, tissue, marrow and blood donations.
There are 91,000 people on the national organ wait-list, 1,400 of which are from Northeast Ohio, according to Chuck Heald of LifeBanc, the nonprofit organ procurement organization that serves Northeast Ohio.
Heald said that the national shortage of organ donors also extends to Ohio, where less than 50 percent of people with a driver's license are registered. He said that kidneys are the most-needed organ both nationally and in the region because of complications from hypertension and diabetes. Lungs and hearts are also in high demand.
"There are neighbors, co-workers, family members that are in our communities that need organ transplants," Heald said.
One transplant recipient
Bill Pacak, a 57-year-old Campbell resident, used to be one of those people. After being diagnosed with liver disease, he and his family waited 13 months before he received a transplant in 1998.
"All I could do is hope and pray," Pacak said.
Although Pacak can no longer work because of his illness, the former skill trade supervisor at Chrysler in Twinsburg has stayed busy. He went back to school and in 2004 he graduated from Kent State University with a degree in business management. He also frequents health fairs to encourage people to become organ donors.
"It gave me a second chance," Pacak said. "I saw things I would have never been able to see. I watched my children graduate from college, I married off my daughter, I got to go watch my grandchild be born."
Pacak said he's lucky to have received a new liver, and he knows there are thousands more people waiting to get a new organ. He said raising awareness about registering for organ donation is important.
People who are ready to register can do so on LifeBanc's Web site, www.lifebanc.org. This is the first April the site has been available for easy donor registration.
"We are really excited about this opportunity to reach people where they work or at home," Heald said. He said that LifeBanc is also working with local hospitals to get the word out about Donate Life.
Making the decision
Dr. Dan Lebozitz, president and medical director of LifeBanc, said that for people who don't register, the decision to donate organs falls upon the family.
"What the family needs to do is focus on the wishes of the individual," said Dr. Lebozitz. He also said that it is important for families to discuses organ donation so those wishes are known.
"It's an opportunity for people, if they can no longer survive, to help other people to survive," he said.
Pacak agreed that talking to your family an important step when deciding to become a donor.
"Make sure your next of kin are aware of your wishes," Pacak said. "Some family out there made that decision with their loved one for me and I appreciate that every day of my life."