Retiring as HelpHOPELive Executive Director and CEO, Lynne Coughlin Samson, will share about transitions and openness in life and health using her personal passion and life experiences as she changes careers after many years of this and earlier successes.
Lynne Coughlin Samson, Esq., an attorney, became executive director of HelpHOPELive in June 2003. Since then, the organization has grown dramatically in: • Services provided and patient populations serve – Founded as a nonprofit to assist end-stage heart patients in the Greater Philadelphia area with funding for transplants, today HelpHOPELive is a national nonprofit serving all solid organ, bone marrow and stem cell transplant candidates, as well as individuals living with catastrophic injuries or illnesses resulting in a physical disability.
• The number of patients served annually: 2,700 on average. • The amount raised in community campaigns in honor of patients: $8.6 million in FYE 09/2013; over $96 million since inception. • The amount paid for uninsured medical expenses: $6.7 million in FYE 09/2013; over $82 million since inception. • Funds raised have helped more than 2,300 transplants receive transplants • Helped restore independence and quality of life for 800 individuals living with a catastrophic injury or illness.
Before joining HelpHOPELive, Lynne served in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office and then practiced law with the Center City law firm of White and Williams, LLP for 13 years. Lynne has long been involved in civic and community affairs. To name just a few examples: Lynne is active in Wayne Presbyterian Church; she has served on the board of A Better Chance (in Radnor) since 2002; and she served on the Radnor Township Board of Health for six years (1994 – 2001).
Lynne and her family learned about HelpHOPELive (then known as National Transplant Assistance Fund & Catastrophic Injury Program) after her stepdaughter, Katie, suffered a spinal cord injury, making her deeply aware of the numerous financial patients and families face when dealing with a medical crisis.
