Your chance to help the
n BY LISA ARCELLA
When she went to work one night as a 9-1-
1 dispatcher in August 2008, little did Mah-
wah native Pamela Drozd know it would be
a night that would forever change her world.
“I heard the call on the radio that there was
a terrible accident in Paramus,” she remem-
bers. “About an hour later I found out that my
husband was in it.”
The crash killed volunteer firefighter Mi-
chael Drozd at age 46; he and Pam had been
married 22 months.
Like so many families in similar situations,
Pam was asked in her most grief-stricken
moment whether she knew if Michael wanted to be an organ
donor. Luckily it was a question to which she clearly knew the
answer.
“We had just had a conversation about it four months ear-
lier,” says Pam. “He had said then, ‘I want them to take every-
thing. I won’t need it and I know other people will.’”
To honor Michael’s memory and perhaps come to terms with
her own grief, Pam got involved with the NJ Sharing Network, an
organization that increases the number of lives saved – includ-
ing many in law enforcement – through research, donor family
support, education and public awareness about the life-saving
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NEW JERSEY COPS
■ MARCH 2017
benefits of organ and tissue donation and
transplantation.
More than 10,000 people will participate
in one of three 5K races, walks and fun runs
throughout the state on April 2 at Bergen
Community College in Paramus, May 7 on
the Great Lawn at the Ocean Promenade in
Long Branch and June 4 at NJ Sharing Net-
work Headquarters in New Providence.
“It’s a celebration of life,” Pam explains,
“remembering all of those organ and tissue
donors, honoring those who received those
donations and offering hope to those who
are waiting.”
Pam often speaks to first responders to tell
Michael’s story, and she and her team of 20 friends plan on rais-
ing between $3,000 and $5,000 for the Paramus run. The orga-
nization has raised more than $5 million to date.
“I could make that decision to donate Michael’s organs and
tissue with confidence, but many people simply don’t know
their loved ones’ wishes,” she says. “I know it’s a tough conver-
sation to have but, if you discuss what you want with your fami-
ly, it’s like giving them an unwrapped present. One organ donor
can save up to eight people, and a tissue donor can enhance the
lives of up to 50 people. Mike’s tissue donation helped 46 other
people. That’s an amazing legacy.” d