Source: Hartford Courant
By Melissa Pionzio
EAST HAMPTON - — After Maggie and Don Coolican of East Hampton lost their 6-year-old daughter to complications caused by a rare arteriovenous malfunction — an abnormal connection between her veins and arteries — they decided to donate little Katie's organs and tissue so others could live.
Maggie Coolican also began what became a personal mission — to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation and improve supportive services for donor families.
"When she died, there wasn't anything available for families," Coolican said of her daughter. "We got one letter from the hospital thanking us for Katie's donation and that was it. There was no bereavement program offered or follow up. As a nurse and mother, that kind of horrified me."
That was 25 years ago, and Coolican has continued to make organ donation awareness a priority through her work as the coordinator of donor family services for the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation (MTF) and affiliation with other organ procurement organizations.
A regular speaker on organ donation, Coolican is the founding chair of the National Donor Family Council and author of "For Those Who Grieve and Give." And she was instrumental in the creation of the Patches of Love National Donor Family Quilt.
More than a dozen friends and family members of organ donors regularly assist Coolican in her work with the transplant foundation, by volunteering their time to create newsletters, informational mailings and data updates on organ donation.
"I have been a volunteer for about nine years now, and I have heard Maggie on the phone talking with donor families," said Manchester resident Barbara Buckalew, whose son died of a brain aneurysm at age 31. "She never mentions that she is the mother of a donor, she is so caring and selfless."
Her work, Coolican said, is her daughter's legacy. To honor that legacy, Katie's smiling image has been depicted on a floral portrait that will be featured on a "Donate Life" float in the New Year's Day Tournament of Roses Parade on Jan. 1 in Pasadena, Calif. The float is supported by LifeChoice Donor Services, Donate Life Connecticut and the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation and will include 76 memorial floragraphs.
Maggie Coolican also began what became a personal mission — to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation and improve supportive services for donor families.
"When she died, there wasn't anything available for families," Coolican said of her daughter. "We got one letter from the hospital thanking us for Katie's donation and that was it. There was no bereavement program offered or follow up. As a nurse and mother, that kind of horrified me."
That was 25 years ago, and Coolican has continued to make organ donation awareness a priority through her work as the coordinator of donor family services for the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation (MTF) and affiliation with other organ procurement organizations.
A regular speaker on organ donation, Coolican is the founding chair of the National Donor Family Council and author of "For Those Who Grieve and Give." And she was instrumental in the creation of the Patches of Love National Donor Family Quilt.
More than a dozen friends and family members of organ donors regularly assist Coolican in her work with the transplant foundation, by volunteering their time to create newsletters, informational mailings and data updates on organ donation.
"I have been a volunteer for about nine years now, and I have heard Maggie on the phone talking with donor families," said Manchester resident Barbara Buckalew, whose son died of a brain aneurysm at age 31. "She never mentions that she is the mother of a donor, she is so caring and selfless."
Her work, Coolican said, is her daughter's legacy. To honor that legacy, Katie's smiling image has been depicted on a floral portrait that will be featured on a "Donate Life" float in the New Year's Day Tournament of Roses Parade on Jan. 1 in Pasadena, Calif. The float is supported by LifeChoice Donor Services, Donate Life Connecticut and the Musculoskeletal Transplant Foundation and will include 76 memorial floragraphs.
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