For Matt Schutz, the waiting for a new kidney and heart had taken its toll by 2012. He could barely walk half a city block without being winded and needing to rest. Commuting from Flemington to New York City had become impossible.
But Schutz was reborn in January 2013 at age 54, when doctors at Newark Beth Israel Hospital put him under for 36 hours, and replaced his deteriorated kidney and heart with organs that had been generously donated.
Within a day, Schutz was sitting up in bed, eager to return to work. Now, his commute into New York includes a brisk, 2.25-mile walk from the World Trade Center rail station, over the Brooklyn Bridge to his office.
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Schutz has much to be thankful for, as he captains “Team Flemington” at NJ Sharing Network’s 5K Walk and USATF-Certified Race in New Providence on Sunday, June 8. His team, now in its second year, will likely comprise about 10 runners, and he is hopeful more will join to show their support for NJ Sharing Network.
“Without NJ Sharing Network, I wouldn’t be here,” he said. “Without NJ Sharing Network, there would have been no organs for me. My doctors can only do what they can; it is NJ Sharing Network that makes me alive today.”
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Team Flemington will honor Schutz’s donor, Lauren, a 22-year-old woman from Ohio. The team will also remember Sarah Doshna of Flemington, the mother of three whose donated organs and tissue saved three lives when she died in 2010.
Schutz said he will be making a speech at his synagogue to urge others to support Team Flemington. He writes: “It takes volunteers to raise funds, support people and spread the word. Volunteers are irreplaceable. The fact that I am here and healthy and able to speak with you is proof of the efficacy and need to support organ and tissue donation.
“It takes all kinds of kinds,” he added. “Support Team Flemington. Be the organ donor kind. Be the financial support kind. Be the volunteer kind. Be whatever kind you want. Just be kind.”
To join Team Flemington or sign up for NJ Sharing Network’s 5K Walk and USATF-Certified Race, visit www.NJSharingNetwork.org. To learn more, get involved and register as an organ and tissue donor, visitwww.NJSharingNetwork.org or call NJ Sharing Network at 1-800-742-7365.
About NJ Sharing Network
NJ Sharing Network is a non-profit, federally designated organization responsible for the recovery and placement of donated organs and tissue for New Jersey residents in need of life-saving transplants. NJ Sharing Network partners with Donate Life America, a not-for-profit national alliance that drives communities to increase their numbers of registered donors. NJ Sharing Network honors those who gave, pays tribute to those who received, offers hope to those who continue to wait, and remembers the lives lost while waiting...for the gift of life.
