Forty years of life made possible by a kidney transplant

Jan Schichtel of Franklinville recently celebrated 40 years since receiving her kidney transplant, a gift made possible by the generosity of a donor family.

Jan wrote a reflection on those 40 years in a piece entitled "Blood and organ donations are gifts of life for many" which appears in the Another Voice column of the Buffalo News (Print edition Jan. 12, 2023, page A8).

Jan is a member of Team Buffalo, a local group of transplant recipients, living donors, donor families and supporters who participate in the Transplant Games of America. She has shared information on the importance of organ, eye and tissue donation as a volunteer with ConnectLife and the Kidney Foundation of Western New York.

She also served as a volunteer at the New York City office of the National Kidney Foundation, working with a donor mom on "The Patches of Love" and the book "For Those Who Give And Grieve."

Jan Schichtel (center) is pictured with Brielle Cornelius, NP, and Muhammad T. Javed, MD, of Nephrology Services Medical Group of Olean & Bradford, PC.