UNOS commemorates Vicki Crosier for her tireless advocacy on behalf of organ donor families as well as transplant candidates and recipients. She passed away recently at the age of 82.
Ms. Crosier, a longtime real estate broker in East Berne, N.Y., became a donor mother in 1980 when her son Kyle died as a result of an automobile accident. She began volunteering with her local organ procurement organization, the Center for Donation & Transplant. She was instrumental in establishing the M.O.D. (Mothers of Organ Donors) Squad to provide education and support for donor mothers, and in the organization of her local chapter of Compassionate Friends. She also served on the National Kidney Foundation’s Donor Family Council and worked with the Lions Eye Bank in Albany, N.Y.
She was one of the first donor family members to volunteer for OPTN and UNOS committees. She was an inaugural member of the Patient Affairs Committee and later served a term as its chair. During that time, she and other committee members oversaw the development of What Every Patient Needs to Know, a booklet that has served as a vital educational resource for more than a quarter million transplant patients and their caregivers. She also served on the UNOS Board of Directors and its Executive Committee.
Throughout her service to all these organizations, she was a powerful and effective supporter of the needs and perspectives of people whose lives have been touched by organ donation and transplantation. She was an inspiration to many in her home community and nationwide.
Additional information about her life and achievements is available in an online tribute.
