Transplant surgeon Terra Pearson, MD, was first exposed to organ donation as a third-year medical student when she observed a kidney transplant surgery. “The surgeons put in the kidney, and it was still grayish, without blood flow,” she says. “When they opened the blood vessels, the kidney turned a beautiful reddish-pink and began to make urine. It awed me!” 

As she continued through her residency, Dr. Pearson’s love for transplantation grew. “There is a glimmer of hope that comes from organ donation, because you give the greatest gift of life from your pain,” she says. “You allow someone to be able to breathe. Someone to be able to walk again. Another person to be able to come off of dialysis. To have a new life again.”

“We all want to be good people,” she adds. “I think this is our way of being a bit of a Mother Theresa, right? It’s kind of our way of sainthood, if you can imagine.”

Every 10 minutes, someone is added to the organ transplant waiting list.

Approximately 113,000 men, women, and children are waiting for life-saving organ transplants. One organ donor has the power to save up to eight lives and change the outcomes of someone’s world forever by giving them a second chance. Additionally, tissue donation can save and improve the lives of up to 75 people with their gifts. You can make a huge impact by registering as an organ and tissue donor.

Learn more about organ and tissue donation, or register as a donor at https://donatelifewisconsin.org.