Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Press Release
SOURCE: LifeSharers
Thomas Mollo Named Advisor to LifeSharers
National Kidney Registry Executive to Help Grass-Roots Effort to Increase Organ
Donations
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – November 18, 2008 – Thomas Mollo, Executive Director of the
National Kidney Registry, has agreed to serve as an advisor to LifeSharers. LifeSharers
is a non-profit network of organ donors that gives registered organ donors preferred
access to transplantable organs. It was launched in 2002 to help alleviate the shortage of
human organs needed for transplant operations. That shortage kills over 8,000
Americans every year.
“LifeSharers has the potential to make a significant dent in the ever growing organ
shortage,” says Mr. Mollo. “I really like the fact that the decision to donate is mine and
not left to those left behind. If more individuals donated altruistically while living or
donated upon their passing the growing problem could be solved. Everyone should
seriously think about the impact they could have on their fellow man.”
There is a large and growing shortage of transplantable human organs in the United
States. Over 100,000 people are on the national transplant waiting list, and more than
half of those people will die before they get a transplant. Most of these deaths are
needless, since Americans bury or cremate 20,000 transplantable organs every year.
LifeSharers has created an incentive to stop this terrible waste, by giving registered organ
donors preferred access to donated organs.
LifeSharers members agree to donate their organs when they die. They also direct that
their organs be offered first to other LifeSharers members, if any member who needs
them is a suitable match, before offering them to non-members. By giving registered
organ donors preferred access to their organs, LifeSharers members create an incentive
for non-donors to become donors.
“LifeSharers offers a compelling trade,” says David J. Undis, Executive Director of
LifeSharers. “If you’ll donate your organs through LifeSharers after you’ve died,
LifeSharers will increase your chances of getting a transplant should you ever need one to
live.”
LifeSharers membership is free and open to all at http://www.lifesharers.org or by calling
1-888-ORGAN88. There is no age limit, and parents can enroll their minor children. No
one is excluded due to any pre-existing medical condition.
LifeSharers members receive an organ donor card, letters to share with family members
and doctors, and language to attach to their durable power of attorney for healthcare.
ABOUT THOMAS MOLLO
Thomas Mollo is Executive Director of the National Kidney Registry. The mission of the
National Kidney Registry is to save and improve the lives of people facing kidney failure
by increasing the quality, speed, and number of living donor transplants in the world.
The National Kidney Registry is a nonprofit organization based out of Long Island, New
York and supported by counselors, volunteers and partners around the United States. The
National Kidney Registry web site is at http://www.kidneyregistry.org.
Mr. Mollo has 25+ years of management experience, including senior operating positions
at TIAA-CREF and JC Penney. He attended the New York Institute of Technology and
served 20 years in the New York Air National Guard.
ABOUT LIFESHARERS
LifeSharers is a 501(c)(3) non-profit network of organ donors. Membership in
LifeSharers is free and open to all. LifeSharers does not discriminate on the basis of race,
color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, age, physical handicap, health
status, marital status, or economic status. Since its launch on May 22, 2002, LifeSharers
has attracted 11,826 members, including members in all 50 states, the District of
Columbia, and Puerto Rico. The LifeSharers web site is at http://www.lifesharers.org.
Contact:
David J. Undis, 615/351-8622
daveundis@lifesharers.org