Lifeline

At the age of 27, Andrew Meadowcroft’s final act in life was to save four people and give sight to two others. On December 1, his mother, Lori Burda, spoke of her son’s life-saving gift of organ donation as she hung the first ornament on the Tree of Life at the United Network for Organ…

Jasmine Chalmers turned 13 last week. The Sunday before Thanksgiving, she was supposed to be celebrating in Disney World. The Make-A-Wish foundation was throwing a Bon Voyage party for her before she left for Florida. Instead, she spent her birthday in the hospital, recovering from an intestinal issue, unable to eat or drink. Now she will…

It was the day before Thanksgiving when the Hedricks got “The Call.” The Washington Regional Transplant Community (WRTC) had recovered a heart that would save 15-year-old Jennifer Hedrick’s life. “It was an absolute perfect match,” her father Steve remembers. Jennifer was only 8 years old when she was first diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a condition…

Ask Chris and Elizabeth Vance how they met and they will tell you a vivid story about a chance encounter at a party at Virginia Tech in 1973. Chris remembers Elizabeth wearing a purple scarf in her hair. Elizabeth remembers the tuna fish sandwich and the copy of Stranger in a Strange Land that Chris gave…

Last year, an important connection was made that will have ripples throughout U.S. Muslim community—and the scientific community—for generations. The Washington Regional Transplant Community (WRTC) had been struggling to find a way to help D.C.’s growing Muslim population accept and embrace the idea of organ donation. Doctors throughout the region were starting to hear “It’s…