As an ambassador for Legacy of Hope, Jerry Milner is used to giving thanks for the gift of life.
After a freak accident caused him to have a hematoma (blood pooling someplace inside your body) on his liver, doctors discovered cancer cells were present. “Until May 2018, I was perfectly healthy,” he explains. “I was helping a young woman get her luggage down from the overhead compartment on an airplane. I didn’t realize how heavy it was, it swung down and hit me in the abdomen, which caused the hematoma. That’s how doctors saw the cancer. Had it not been for the accident, the liver cancer probably would have spread and there may have been nothing they could do about it.”
Instead Milner was able to have a liver transplant and received his gift of life on Nov. 6, 2020. Milner’s donor was a man in his 40s named Perry, who had a stroke that he couldn’t recover from. “He’s part of me now,” Milner said. “He’s living with me, traveling, and going through my life. I would love to meet my donor family someday if they are willing.”
Another thing that was immediately apparent to Milner was a desire to give back to the organ donation mission. “The day I woke up in the ICU, I had a really hard time knowing that someone else died in order for me to live,” he said. “It was really emotional for me. And then it hit me that there are so many people in worse shape than I was who need a transplant and there aren’t enough organ donors. I didn’t know how I was going to help but I knew I wanted to be part of the solution.”
So Milner became available to tell his story with the hope of registering more people as donors and saving more lives. Legacy of Hope ambassadors (volunteers) regularly help educate the public about organ, eye and tissue donation through participation in health fairs, public awareness events, office assistance, speaking at places of worship and civic organizations, presentations, school and DMV visits, and much more.
The organization could not reach as many people as they do to promote the power of organ donation without the help of their ambassadors, says Abby Litovsky, Legacy of Hope’s community liaison. “We really need as much support as we can have all over the state to reach as many people as possible to promote organ donation,” she said.
Not only does the support help the organ donation mission but it also helps transplant recipients and donor families alike through their healing process. “Getting to know other people who have been transplanted through volunteering has helped tremendously,” Milner said. “Sharing what you both went through helps the whole healing process. The physical healing is one thing but the mental healing and the changes a transplant makes in your life is another.”
And when you can attach a personal story to organ donation, it impacts someone’s willingness to register as a donor. “It’s a great way for transplant recipients to help save lives because their story may be the reason someone on the fence decides to register,” Litovsky said. “There are so many times that an ambassador has shared their story and somebody says later, ‘I didn’t know if I was going to register, but after hearing this person talk, now I’m going to.’ Or a whole community registers after hearing another story.”
Milner knows firsthand the importance – and urgency – of having more people register to become organ, eye, and tissue donors. “I don’t think people understand that when someone needs an organ transplant, it’s not like they can wait indefinitely until they get one,” he said. “People run out of time waiting.”
It’s knowing that by sharing his story, he can impact whether someone makes the decision to register that is most rewarding for Milner. “I enjoy speaking on behalf of organ donation and telling my story,” Milner said. “But I feel like more than telling my story, I’m telling the story of the people who are still waiting.”
Becoming an ambassador is also not limited to just donor families and transplant recipients, anyone can make a difference. Whether it’s through a Legacy of Hope sponsored event or other events around the state, the important part is having a passion to educate the public about how organ donation saves lives.
The first step to becoming an ambassador is to complete the application form online. If you’re approved, you are required to attend at least one volunteer training before starting. For more information about the ambassador program, click here. Or contact Abby Litovsky at alitovsky@legacyofhope.org.
And while you’re at it, register your decision to make LIFE possible and be an organ, eye, and tissue donor.
