- [Narrator] Funding for this edition of One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been provided by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

Here when you need us most, now and always.

The Russell Berrie Foundation.

Making a difference.

PSE&G, committed to providing safe, reliable energy now and in the future.

The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey.

Fedway Associates, Inc.

The Fidelco Group.

Valley Bank.

The North Ward Center.

And by Georgian Court University.

Promotional support provided by Meadowlands Chamber.

Building connections, driving business growth.

And by BestofNJ.com, all New Jersey in one place.

- This is One-On-One.

- I'm an equal American just like you are.

- The jobs of tomorrow are not the jobs of yesterday.

- Look at this.

You get this?

- Life without dance is boring.

- I don't care how good you are or how good you think you are, there is always something to learn.

- I did do the finale, and guess where my trailer was?

A block away from my apartment, it couldn'’t have been better!

- People call me 'cause they feel nobody's paying attention.

- (slowly) Start talking right now.

- That's a good question, high five.

(upbeat music) (upbeat music) - Hi, I'm Steve Adubato.

You may hear the music behind me.

I know you see a bunch of people organizing behind us.

You may ask, what is this?

This is the New Jersey sharing network 5k, in person.

We're doing this in the fall of 2021.

It's been a long time since we've been out on location.

It's been a long time since these people have had a chance to be out here, you're about to see a whole range of people.

People who have received the gift of life, organ and tissue donation.

That's what the sharing network is all about.

People who are recipients of organs.

Family members of those who have passed, but gave the gift of life to others.

There are 4,000 people in New Jersey waiting right now for an organ.

Some of those people die waiting.

There are 110,000 people waiting across the nation, this entire program, even though we've been doing this for many years, it's more important than ever before.

Particularly given the challenges of this pandemic.

As you see the website, as you see that information, reach out, find out more about organ and tissue donation.

This is the New Jersey sharing network 5k.

We're in beautiful New Providence, New Jersey.

This is a half hour programming, just can't afford to miss.

She's in the race this year for the first time ever.

She's Elisse Glennon.

She's executive director of the New Jersey sharing network foundation.

All the years we've been doing this.

I've never seen you dressed up like this.

You're ready to go.

- I'm ready to go.

This isn't actually my race shirt on, I still have to get my bib.

I'm going to change.

I'm going to change for the start of the race.

It's a big deal for me.

I'm glad you said that.

I'm glad you said it's a big deal because it is.

We've been doing this since 2011.

So this is our 11th year.

And for 10 years I watched families come together, and cross that finish line and look up to the sky in honor of their loved one or look over at, or they're a transplant recipient.

So they, kind of met this challenge and I watched that for 10 years and it's really powerful.

And after kind of being away from everybody for so long through the pandemic, knowing that we were gonna come back here together, back in March or April, I announced to our board that I was going to run alongside with them, to be part of it in a different way.

You know, we're obviously part of this event and putting this event.

- Organizers, administrators, leaders getting things done.

- And I kind of felt like it was time to be really in it with everybody.

So I'm gonna try it today, Steve, and I'm doing it on behalf of our donor families and our transplant recipients.

I'm doing it, for those patients waiting.

Really just to kind of be in it with everybody this year.

- I always think that everybody knows about organ and tissue donation.

Everyone knows how to sign up.

It's so easy, but the message still has to get out.

What is the message?

And what's the easiest way for people.

If they want to choose to give the gift of life, when that time comes, what do they do?

- The message is that organ donation is very powerful.

Obviously with that one decision of registering to be an organ donor, you can save countless lives.

It's easy to do.

It's not an easy decision to make, but it's easy to do.

Once you've talked to your family and thought it through it's a personal decision, you can go right to our website at njsharingnetwork.org to register to be a donor.

You can also do it in your iPhone.

On the health app of your iPhone.

It takes less than 60 seconds to register to be an organ donor.

And it would impact so many lives.

- We're honored to once again, talk to our friend, Chris Bautista.

Chris Bautista is the chair of the New Jersey sharing network foundation board, and your son, Luke Bautista an organ donor, a tissue donor.

Tell us about Luke and why he was such a special young man and the gift of life he gave to so many others.

- Well, I like to tell people, I didn't know that Luke's name meant bringer of light, but he felt that it does.

And I didn't know that until he had passed, but he just, he brought it.

He brought it when he was alive and he's bringing it now, you know, that he's deceased and he would just light up every single room he walked into, it was a joy.

We'd go food shopping.

He's like, what's next on the list.

And he'd run to all their aisles to get it real quick.

He'd be on a train and go over and talk to strangers.

He was just one of those people that was super engaged with life and everything around him at all times.

And he really, I mean, there wasn't a dull moment that we had while he was alive.

And now even in his passing - He was 15.

- He was 15 years old, 2016, he passed.

- Tell folks what happened.

- Well, he was home alone.

And you know, he was messing around with, with huffing basically.

And it went right into his brainstem.

He passed out, his older brother, CJ, who was 17 at the time, found him a few minutes later and you know, saw that he was passed out called 911, performed CPR.

Passed away a few days later in the hospital.

And you know, then we were approached by the New Jersey sharing network about donating his organs.

- Tell folks, how many people were saved.

- Yeah, Luke was able to save 5 people with his organs and improve the lives of 75 others through his tissue donations.

You know, it's the moment that we were told by a transplant coordinator from the New Jersey sharing network, that his heart was gonna go to a 14 year old boy in New York, we were just like, you know, and she walked into the room and told us like, so like calmly and didn't want to disturb us.

Cause we were still with Luke while he's being kept alive on the ventilator.

And I looked at her and I said, the next time you come with news like that, you better come in through the door and be excited about it because this is good.

We want to hear that kind of positivity right now.

More than anything.

Again, it was, you can't bring him back.

You can't bring a loved one back, but if you can make a positive spin on it or take a sad song and make it a little bit better, like the Beatles say, that's what we wanted to do.

And so as soon as we had that to grasp onto, I just, I ran with it and got so involved.

We raised $86,000 at the first 5k with the sharing network.

- Let's get a couple of numbers, right.

You raised 86 grand, but you also raised if I'm not mistaken over 5 years, over 300 grand, what would you say to folks about the sharing network?

Cause you're all in now.

- Yeah.

I'm definitely all in.

It's such a beautiful organization.

You know, it's a little odd because in some ways I wish I'd never met anybody here because my son would still be alive.

But, fortunately I met some of the most beautiful, just heartwarming, caring, giving people, and it'’s really made a big difference in my life.

- And we're honored to meet Lakisha Bray, the mother of an organ and tissue donor by the name of Taleah Joy Stokes.

- Yes.

- Tell us about Taleah.

- Taleah was born in 1993.

She was born with Cerebral Palsy.

Doctors had told me that my daughter may not make it to the age of 5.

So to be able to watch her progression, being a high functioning child with a disability.

Taleah loved to dance, sing, she loves candy and cell phones.

- Tell us a little bit more about what happened.

- Taleah ended up having a seizure.

The first time she had a seizure, she was about nine.

That was the first time I've seen an active one.

Her disability.

She had what was called a right Hemiplegia.

Taleah's brain never completely developed.

So the portion of her brain that was missing, had to do with her motor skills, her speech, but by the grace of God, although that area was voided, Taleah was able to develop speech.

She was able to learn how to walk.

She was able to go to school and be able to learn and function like a normal student.

And we were transitioning her into adulthood at the age of 20, - The whole idea of organ donation, giving the gift of life.

Does it ever come up?

- When Taleah was born Taleah came into this world as what our family called a miracle baby with having her disabilities and to be able to share the gift of life and to allow my child to transition, being a miracle to someone else was the biggest thing that myself and my family could ever have done.

I knew that it wasn't gonna be a hard decision because at the same time, someone was praying for that miracle for their loved one.

So, I knew that with my family decision and my decision, we were making the best choice, which was to help save someone else's life.

- It's our pleasure to introduce Victor DiSanto, the father of transplant recipient, Joe DiSanto.

Now, how was Joe, how old is Joe now?

- Joe is now 27 years old.

- Tell us about when he was 11.

- When he was 11 in 2005, he was diagnosed with Dilated cardiomyopathy, an enlarged heart.

And 6 months later, he was in the hospital with pneumonia and went into heart failure and an incredible nurse at the hospital started CPR and revived him, brought him back to life.

They eventually put him on a heart machine, awaiting a heart transplant.

- And he got it.

[Victor] Three months later, after a couple of false alarms he got the call that there was a match and an incredible young woman named Natalie was our angel donated her heart to Joe.

She checked, yes, Natalie, Natty is her name.

[Steve] Did you ever find out anything about her?

[Victor] Yes, we did.

We actually met her mother, Juliana here at the sharing network.

The sharing network facilitated the whole meeting, an incredibly emotional day.

She couldn't stop putting her ear on Joe's chest, hugging, crying, putting an ear on his chest.

It was just an incredibly emotional day.

- What is Team Liberty?

Why does it matter so much?

- Team Liberty is a group of recipients.

Donor families, living donors, supporters, professionals, staff from New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.

We come together every 2 years to attend the transplant games.

It's a physical, festive event with competitions and all sorts of swimming, bowling, tennis, pickle ball.

And we come together as a team every 2 years to attend the games.

And in the interim we go out and we speak and we advocate on behalf of organ and tissue donation because we understand both between our donor families and our living donors and the recipients.

We understand the true gift of life and the need for more people to register.

- [Narrator] To watch more One on One with Steve Adubato find us online and follow us on Social media.

- We're here at the 5k, the sharing network 5k, and we are pleased to introduce Carolyn Welsh, who's Vice-president and Chief Clinical Officer of the sharing network.

How are you doing?

- I'm good, thank you so much for coming today.

- You know, It's funny, you told me something, you told me something about the staff.

You said 90% of the staff of the sharing network have no personal connection to someone, either receiving the gift of life, giving the gift of life.

Then where's the passion?

Where does it come from?

- Yeah, it's incredible.

Cause many people do have a connection and that's what brings them to donation.

But our staff are advocates for the gift of life.

They work every day, they get up every day.

Not because they knew someone, but because they want to help someone.

[Steve] You know, the impact of COVID.

We're talking about that before we got on the air, the impact of COVID, describe what COVID's impact has been on the sharing network, by the way, just having this event, being out, being in person in September of 2021, huge deal.

- Huge deal.

So exciting to be here, in person sharing with our sharing network, family, friends, who haven't been together, the reconnection for anyone who's had a connection to organ and tissue donation is so important.

So we're super excited to be here.

The impact on donation for our operations, with COVID.

Scary at first, very scary.

You know, no one really had been going through this.

We were the first right, New York, New Jersey hit first.

So no rule book, no playbook.

We stayed up countless hours, made sure our staff was safe, but our mission is to save and enhance lives and provide organs for transplant.

There were still people that needed that transplant and that was our job.

So we couldn't stop.

We didn't slow down, our lab.

Our clinical operations still worked 24-7 every day.

- There are a lot of misconceptions about organ donation.

What really goes on?

- Yeah, so the misconception of, you know, if something happens to you, they won't care for you or they won't take care of you.

Definite misconception.

- Cause they want your organs.

- The sharing network is a separate organization and comes in at the time of someone's death.

Donation doesn't take place until someone passes away.

We do evaluate donors prior to that situations that we make sure that any time we're talking to a family, we've done everything we can to make sure that we have that opportunity to offer it to them.

So they don't have a second loss.

We don't want to ask about donation and then take it away and say that that's not possible.

So we continue to care for them and care for the families, but the hospitals are treating them in the tragic situation.

It doesn't have anything to do with the secondary, which is organ donation.

After death.

- 22 Years with the sharing network, your level of passion is where.

- 100%, 110% continuous.

Still love it.

Wouldn't do anything else.

- We're here at the sharing network 5k with Ezequiel Garcia, the father of organ and tissue donor Ronaldo Garcia.

Ronaldo was 29.

He passed in a motorcycle accident.

- Yes, that's true.

- How does the whole idea of giving the gift of life to others when he tragically passed; How does that come up?

- He was not a donor.

I don't think he was registered.

He had, we didn't even know anything about it.

You know, the parents, my wife and I, but he had talked to his brothers about it.

When that happened.

And then years of sharing the personnel approached us, they told us, you know, my two sons, they told us that he wishes to be a donor.

So we made a decision right there.

And it was not a difficult one, it was an easy one because we already new.

- It was not difficult.

- No, it was not difficult.

- Were you surprised that Ronaldo did that even though he hadn't told you, were you surprised?

- No, not really.

- What was he like?

Describe him.

- He was very jovial.

He liked, you know, he was very friendly and he was very outspoken.

So, well in a sense, maybe I was a little bit surprised that he had not shared that with us.

Maybe he thought it wasn't important.

Of course he was not expecting to die that soon.

Maybe that wasn't another, - He helped so many people.

- Yes, yes he did.

- Ronaldo was an athlete.

You're an athlete.

You have competed in how many marathons in the last 5 years?

- 5 marathons - Because?

- 200 run.

200 race.

Running for me is a way of grieving my, raised this death.

So I go in his honor.

- It's my honor to introduce Terry Meade, her daughter, Cindy Stoney.

Terry, and a daughter, a wife, caretaker of heart recipient, Mark Meade.

Now, as we're doing this program in September, middle of September, Mark passed away a month or so ago.

- 5 weeks.

Yeah.

I remember interviewing Mark.

- Yeah.

- He received the heart.

13 years was blessed to have the heart.

It's a miracle, but you're here today because.

- Because the New Jersey sharing network has been so important in our lives.

It allowed us to give back for those 13 bonus years as I call it.

- That'’s what you call them the bonus years?

I call it the bonus years.

It gave us opportunities to share our story and raise awareness of the importance of organ donation so that others might be as blessed as our family has been over those 13 years.

- You are wearing your dad's hat and his shirt, because?

- There was nobody better in life.

- What was he like, tell everyone.

- He was infectious, giving, loving.

Everybody wanted a piece of Mark Meade.

Everybody wanted him in their lives.

He made you feel special from the minute you met him.

I'm the luckiest daughter ever, ever.

- What's this race mean today?

- It, just shows the world that organ donation works.

And to see everybody here sharing this amazing celebration of life, in person.

Whether you're a donor family, recipient, a living donor, we all come together to show that the gift of life is so important.

- We're honored to introduce Dawn Burke, who was a lung transplant recipient and team captain of Angels Among Us.

- That's correct.

- You're an advocate and a volunteer at the sharing network.

So you receive a lung, when?

- I received it in June of 2019, after being on the list, I was listed in this September 2017.

- You waited several years.

Describe your life then, before and how it changed when you received the gift of life.

- When I received the gift of life, well before it, I was on oxygen.

- You were?

- Yep.

- Carried around with you?

- Carried it around, had the tanks.

I had the portable, plug it into the car, but I never stayed in one place.

I was always on the go.

- With the tank, you were just moving?

- I didn't let it stop me.

I had to stay positive.

I have my faith.

I had my family, I had my friends, and I believe in daily affirmations.

- And you received the lung.

- I received the lung.

- Changed your life dramatically?

- Changed my life dramatically.

Right away I became an advocate.

Actually.

I went to the support groups and at the support groups, I met a member from the New Jersey sharing network.

She came to speak, Jan Heinz, and she wanted me to come and tell my story.

So I came to the Jersey sharing network.

And I was a speaker at one of their meetings.

And I've been an advocate and volunteer ever since.

- Did you meet Is it your granddaughter?

- Yes.

I went to Hawaii.

I spent my holidays, December 2020.

And went it meet my first grand baby, my granddaughter, [Steve] What's her name?

Warmaya Dana Burke.

- What was it like?

- I was in tears.

And what made me even feel even more on it was that my son gave her middle name as my daughter's name, Dana.

So it was like she's forever living in my heart.

And to see my granddaughter, it was like something that I thought I would never live to see.

And I was able to spend a month with them over in Hawaii.

And I enjoyed every day.

- We're here at the 5k, the, sharing network 5k.

And I think Paul Jova's tired of me interviewing him, but there's always something new and important that comes up when we talked to him, team Andrew.

- Team Andrew - Tell everyone about Andrew.

- Well, team Andrew was started about 13 years ago when the darkest day in our family's life happened, we lost our son, Andrew to an accident.

And we made the decision to donate his organs and tissues.

And this organization has stepped into my life at that time.

And they've been great to me and the type of family we are.

We give back, you know, just like Andrew.

He gave, we give, we like to keep his name alive.

And we've been to every 5k celebration of life that this organization's had.

And it's been fantastic for us to keep healing for us.

- What made him so special?

- Andrew was a great giving, caring kid, always out there trying to help and try in different ways.

You know, he was just that the kid that always had to have a fun time.

- You decided with others to go on, to pay tribute to Andrew and to raise a ton of money for the sharing network to keep this cause going.

- Why team Andrew?

Well, we realized, we read somewhere that the last time you mentioned someone's name is the second time they die.

You know, the first time is natural.

The second time is the last time someone mentions that name for the last time ever.

And we don't ever want to forget, Andrew.

And we want other people to remember Andrew, because he didn't have the opportunity to carry on, to get married, to do all the things that naturally happen in the course of a life.

So that's why we have team Andrew.

To keep it going.

- I want you to meet Kim Slaton who's cousin of organ and tissue donor, Dr. Randy Giles, Randy passed in 2012.

Tell everybody about Randy.

- So Randy, Randy was always there for you, always the best friend, always the one that's going to crack the joke and then disappear and say, I didn't do it.

- Right.

- But he's also the one that was gonna give you the shirt off his back and say, what else do you need?

And how else can I help you?

- And he helped people professionally as well, tell everyone about his background.

- He's a trauma surgeon, so he worked at St. Joseph's hospital for a while.

He was at, in New York for a while where he did his residency and he was about to start his own.

He was gonna go private practice with another doctor.

And unfortunately he decided to, he needed to help from above.

So he went ahead and made himself an angel and a giver as he always was, as he always has been in the past.

- Tell everyone where the whole idea of the gift of life came from for your family.

Was it a family discussion or did Randy just say I'm doing it.

- It wasn't.

Randy had just said, you know, this is what he was going to do because his theory was, he goes, when you go, what are you gonna do with it?

- So many people, 5 people's lives were saved.

50 others were impacted by other, by tissue as well from Randy.

What does it feel like to actually be here in New Providence for the race?

Just being here.

- For me, it is, it's amazing because being here started with a walk for Randy, okay, we're going to walk for Randy.

Then I started volunteering.

My nephew, his God son started wanting to volunteer as well.

So he would volunteer.

We do it together.

And that led to me actually starting to work here because I realized that my, that I needed to give back.

- Organ donation in the minority community.

Why is it so important?

And why is it so challenging?

- Because in the minority community, that is where most of the donations are needed.

There are a lot of, there are so many people on the list that need those organs.

- 4,000 New Jersey, 110 plus thousand in the nation.

So what would you say to folks watching right now who just happen to be in the minority?

- I would say to them that don't listen to the myths.

If we are going to be there to help you, we're going to help you walk you through it.

Step-by-step we're not going to leave you out there once you are a donor family, or even thinking about being a donor family, you are part of the New Jersey sharing network family.

And we're gonna keep you under our wings and keep you with us.

- [Narrator] One-On-One with Steve Adubato has been a production of the Caucus Educational Corporation.

Funding has been provided by Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey.

The Russell Berrie Foundation.

Making a difference.

PSE&G.

The Healthcare Foundation of New Jersey.

Fedway Associates, Inc.

The Fidelco Group.

Valley Bank.

The North Ward Center.

And by Georgian Court University.

Promotional support provided by Meadowlands Chamber.

And by BestofNJ.com.

How do you create change?

By cultivating hope.

And we see that every day, in the eyes of our preschoolers, in the souls of the seniors in our adult day program, in the minds of the students at Robert Treat Academy, a national blue ribbon school of excellence, in the passion of children in our youth leadership development program, in our commitment to connections at the Center for Autism, and in the heart of our community, the North Ward Center, creating opportunities for equity, education, and growth.