To honor Heather McNamara, give the gift of life on GivingTuesday
Heather McNamara is visited by her sister Stephanie and Heather’s dog Maple at New York Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center in April. Credit: McNamara family
This guest essay reflects the views of Doreen Fiscina, a business development manager for New York Blood Center on Long Island.
The holiday season is a time to give thanks for all of the blessings in our lives and to give back to our community. No one embodied the spirit of giving like lifelong Long Islander Heather McNamara, who was the epitome of strength, courage and selflessness.
Heather was diagnosed with cancer when she was 3 years old, and after she battled the disease for two years, her doctors found that a baseball-sized tumor had invaded her abdomen, threatening her young life.
At age 5, Heather underwent a high-risk operation where doctors removed and chilled six of her vital organs, as if for transplantation, while they removed the tumor and then restored her organs. The surgery was the first of its kind on a child and the second in the world. Heather’s story captivated the hearts of so many people in New York and across the country, who viewed her surgery as a miracle and were inspired by her resilience at such a young age.
New York Blood Center's journey with Heather began when she was 8, and after 16 years of collaboration, we at NYBC were devastated by her passing in June.
Heather helped our organization amplify the need for blood donation through a video we put together when she was a young girl. She shared her story as a blood recipient, which inspired countless others to donate blood for patients like her who need this lifesaving treatment. Heather quickly became a familiar face around the region, often speaking at NYBC events and sharing her story with local media.
Heather, who lived in Islip Terrace, understood the importance of blood donation and carried out this mission through her work as an emergency medical technician. Heather relied on blood transfusions throughout her cancer diagnosis, starting with her historic surgery, and continued to require transfusions throughout the endless follow-up surgeries and hospitalizations she endured over the years.
I had the pleasure of working closely with Heather and her family to host blood drives in her honor and to encourage the community to donate blood through inspiring speaking engagements. Heather was a ray of sunshine at our blood drives. She was always quick to thank donors and explain to them why their donation was so important to her.
No matter how sick Heather became, she still wanted people to know about the importance of donating blood. From the first time I met Heather at her first blood drive to the last time I was able to speak to her, she was always so positive and so thankful to the blood donors who continuously donated so she and others like her could receive treatment.
Our community is at a great loss, but Heather’s memory will continue to live on, not only through all that she did throughout her life but also through what her family continues to do in her memory.
Nearly 120,000 individuals like Heather are diagnosed with cancer each year in the area, and a quarter of the region’s blood supply is used to treat cancer patients alone. On this year's GivingTuesday, New York Blood Center and the McNamara family are encouraging all eligible Long Island community members to pay it forward by donating blood in Heather’s memory so that lifesaving blood products are available to all patients. Please make an appointment at a donor center near you.
You can honor Heather by giving the gift of life.
This guest essay reflects the views of Doreen Fiscina, a business development manager for New York Blood Center on Long Island.
