TRIO Philadelphia

during pandemic, Meetings held 4th Tuesday monthly via ZOOM
6:30 - 7:30pm Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/6098774493
Newsletter: https://conta.cc/32gS3k6

Activity Report

January 2022
January 2022 E-News: https://conta.cc/32gS3k6


Following up on a successful year in 2021 both activity and finance wise, the chapter shares the following updates:

- We offer thanks for the continued dedicated service on the TRIO Philadelphia chapter board:
     > Elizabeth Rubin, chapter treasurer (liver recipient Aug 24^th 1992, out 29 years/Quarter Century club member, co-founder of this chapter and the past president for the first 10 years)
     > Sue Kelchner, Vice-president (living kidney donor to husband, Bob, in 1992; chapter co-founder)
     > Susan Pincus, official photographer (kidney/pancreas recipient)
     > Jim Gleason, past-president & webmaster (heart recipient out 28 years/Quarter Century club member, co-founder of this chapter and past president of 17 years)
     > Bob Kelchner (two-time living kidney donor-recipient from his wife, Susan, in '92, and daughter, Laura DiPlacido in 2008; chapter co-founder)
     > chapter president, Bill Soloway (heart recipient) - elected president in July 2020
     > Bob Goodman (heart recipient) - newly elected to the board July 2020


- while the pandemic has put these speaker events on hold for now, in past years host we record/edit semi-annual Penn Heart Transplant Support Group panel/speaker events at the beautiful Smilow Research Center
     you can still view those event videos in the online YouTube-based TRIO Transplant Presentation Library at https://youtu.be/tyXu26BqBic

- members provide candidate and post-transplant patient hospital visitations and mentoring

- still distributing a new 4th printing of our transplant book for children, Mommy Can Play Again, (<-- click here to view) which continues to be given out free (donations are always welcome) to requests from transplant programs across the country and the local Delaware Valley (NJ/PA/DE) region - books are being distributed to local community libraries and transplant program social workers as a way to introduce TRIO and engage them in our on-going activities/events

- our annual tradition of many years, we continue our annual $1,000 contribution in support of the TRIO national scholarship program (two chapter members, Susan Pincus and Elizabeth Rubin, serve on the national scholarship committee).

- TRIO Philadelphia is proud of its decades-long tradition of supporting the TRIO national organization with its members serving on the national board and in various leadership officer roles.
Currently, chapter members go beyond their local service, serving on national levels, such as:
     > Elizabeth Rubin as TRIO National secretary (and past president)
     > Susan Pincus as TRIO National treasurer
     > Jim Gleason as TRIO National president

     > Bob Goodman recently (7/21) stepped down as UNOS/OPTN treasurer and board member, and is currently (Jan '22) running for election as vice-president of their Patient and Family Affairs office
     > Jim Gleason as UNOS/OPTN Finance committee advisor (and 2X past UNOS/OPTN board member with 20 years of UNOS/OPTN committee service)

- the chapter hosts an annual open board meeting luncheon

this most recent one in November of 2021 . . .



this prior one in 2020 . . .



- the chapter continues to work in concert with the Gift of Life Donor Program (our local OPO) and other local support groups with such on-going events as:

     > volunteering to support and hosting a TRIO informational table at the annual Gift of Life Donor Program (OPO) DASH for donor awareness held in April, Donate Life Month's big event here in Philadelphia

     

>  hosting regular support group speaker meetings, recording their presentations for the TRIO national Transplant Presentation Library (now - as of Jan '22 - over 164 videos, 95% of which have been recorded at our chapter support group meetings here in Philadelphia are now viewable on YouTube, go to LIBRARY (<-- click here) to select a title



     > chapter members continue to host donor table events (local community health fair shown below) and as public speakers for the OPO's speaker's bureau, sharing their donor/recipient life stories to spread the message of transplant success and the urgent need for donor registrations  (also Pam (donor mother) and Jim with The Tin Woman cast after talking with their heart transplant story/play audience)

  

Bob & Sue Kelchner family (with their son, daughter and granddaughter) with Jim and Grand Master at a Philadelphia Masonic Lodge Organ Donor presentation night where they shared their living donor story and TRIO's role



     > chapter member athletes participate as members of Team Philadelphia at the World and US transplant games
            << Bob Goodman  and  Bill Soloway >>

     > the chapter participates in the local Gift of Life Transplant family house 'Home Cooked Heroes' program, baking for the families that stay at this 32 room Philadelphia based 'home-away-from-home' transplant families



     > members participate in various community advocacy programs, offering evidence of the benefits of being organ donors and the success of organ and tissue transplantation
As one example, our new chapter president, Bill Soloway, heart recipient, uses his cycling passion in parades and local community events wearing blue & green donor colors; or Susan Pincus at a local sports event







 




- the chapter's monthly electronic newsletter can be viewed at NEWSLETTER featuring both members' current updates and updated chapter news.  Plans for 2022 include monthly video-based speaker meetings, Transplant House home-cooked heroes event, all as announced on our TRIO Philadelphia website, so stay tuned for announcements.