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By a show of hands
How many of us have a driver license?
How many of us are 18 years old or older?
How many of us have access to the internet, a phone or a mailbox?

If you raised your hand to any of these questions, you hold the power to impact countless lives. You may even have the power to save the lives of people just like you. I'm talking about the power of choice, and the choice to make an organ or tissue donation.

Imagine that tomorrow morning you wake up and find out that you're moving to Hawaii, effective immediately, and you have a closet filled with coats, all of them perfectly usable coats, but all of them now perfectly useless to you. Would you pack up all those coats and take them with you to Hawaii? Would you throw them in the trash heap and forget about them? Or would you leave them behind for someone else to use?

The decision to make an organ or tissue donation is far more complex than deciding what to do with a closet full of coats, but the concept is the same.

In 2005, almost 90,000 people in the United States were on an organ transplant list. That same year, fewer than 18,000 transplants were performed. This means at 72,000 people continue to wait or have died waiting for an organ transplant.

The reason most people do not elect to donate is lack of information.

For example, many people worry that organ and tissue donation would be disfiguring or disrespectful. It's not. Organ donation in no way interferes with the ability to hold an open casket funeral, and the procedures are performed professionally, respectfully, and with the deepest gratitude and appreciation for the gift that has been given.

Some people mistakenly believe that organ donation is like being salvaged for parts. The truth is that only six major organs and five types of tissue may be donated, and eligibility depends on many factors that can only be determined after the donor's death. Typically, two to three organs are harvested from any given donor, but sometimes other tissues or organs are eligible as well.

Some people worry that if their name is on a donor list, they will not receive the same quality of care. This is false. Donation is not considered until all attempts to save your life have failed. The transplantation team is not contacted or involved in any decisions about your care until after your death.

Many people think they are too sick or too old to donate organs, but virtually anyone can become an organ and tissue donor. If you do suffer from an illness, you may want to

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