Tulsa Liver Recipient to be Honored in Rose Parade
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LifeShare of Oklahoma is honoring Karen Hoyt, of Tulsa, as a float rider in the 2022 Tournament of Roses Parade on January 1st.
LifeShare is the organ procurement organization in Oklahoma responsible for the recovery of organs and tissue for transplant purposes. Every year, LifeShare helps sponsor the Donate Life Float in the Tournament of Roses Parade on New Year’s Day to spread the message about organ, eye and tissue donation. As a sponsor, LifeShare is able to send one recipient to ride the float and one donor portrait to be honored on the float. |
Karen lives her life in honor of the young hero who gifted her a second chance at life. Now, an active community volunteer, she encourages those in need of that same gift.
Karen shares her grateful spirit and the positive attitude to be an encouragement to others. She has always lived a healthy life despite being born with only one kidney.
Karen was active in her community as a full-time teacher, volunteer and Sunday school teacher at her church. In 2010, she learned that her liver was failing, and she was later diagnosed with the Hepatitis C virus.
She was sent home thinking her days were numbered. Despite this news, she clung to her faith and began eating even healthier than she had before the diagnosis. Luckily, an antiviral medication came out and she was cured of Hepatitis C by 2011 but end-stage liver failure still loomed over Karen.
Karen went back to her career as a teacher and continued to live as healthy as possible. During one of her screenings, the doctor determined that her damaged liver was not removing toxins from her blood, which diminished her mental capabilities. She also became limited on what she could do as she frequently had muscle fatigue, liver pain and joint pain.
After learning to manage her pain, Karen’s health began to worsen. When she was at her regular check-ups, the doctors found a cancerous tumor on her liver. Her doctors recommended a liver transplant, and amid the listing process, she began to make end-of-life plans with her daughter. To cheer their spirits, they began to look online at stories of hope from others who had received a transplant. Karen was encouraged and continued to eat healthy meals and walk when she could.
When Karen was fully listed on the transplant waiting list, she was grateful to think that at someone’s greatest crisis in life they would make a decision that would eventually grant her many more years to live. She was so humbled that she called her transplant coordinator and almost asked them to remove her from the list.
As she waited for a second chance at life, Karen underwent many procedures to shrink the tumor on her liver so that she could remain on the transplant waiting list. Twice, Karen was called in hopes that she would receive her liver, but neither offer was a good fit.
However, on April 13, 2015, Karen received her liver from a selfless donor and learned that her donor was the same age as many of the students she once taught in school.
Karen is a motivation to many. She encourages others waiting to receive their life saving transplant, and she spends her time teaching nutrition classes. The classes help those struggling with kidney or liver disease learn to eat better to live a healthier life. In addition, she also serves on a variety of boards and committees to help people with health needs and those in the transplant community. With her renewed health, Karen is thrilled to be back in the classroom teaching full-time.
Driven to honor her donor, Karen participated in the 2016 Transplant Games of America and the 2017 World Transplant Games. She began entering 5K runs to raise awareness for organ donation. She also is more adventurous and does things she wouldn’t have tried before to honor her donor and his life.
Most of all, this second chance in life has given Karen the opportunity and privilege to be involved in her grandkids' lives, and she is thankful for the chance to be a sister, mother and wife. She is grateful to be honored on the Donate Life Rose Parade Float on New Year’s Day.
The 2022 float features stylized Venetian colonnades, inspired by the Palazzo Ducale or Doges’ Palace in Venice. These ornate porticos will be adorned with memorial floral portraits, honoring the gift of life and hope given by organ, eye and tissue donors.
Venice’s quintessential gondolas will carry organ, eye and tissue recipients, as they continue sailing in their life journey, thanks to their donors’ gifts. Living donors and recipients will walk alongside the float. A lush dedication garden features individually dedicated roses and will complete the beautiful Venetian scene, along with blue and white waves, representing the flowing Venice canals.
As the world's most visible campaign to inspire organ, eye and tissue donation, the Donate Life Rose Parade float inspires viewers to save and heal more than one million people in need of organ, eye and tissue transplants each year.
“We are honored to have two Oklahomans to represent organ, eye and tissue donation this year at the Rose Parade,” said Jeffrey Orlowski, President and Chief Executive Officer of LifeShare of Oklahoma. “With a U.S. television audience in the tens of millions and a worldwide audience in the hundreds of millions, these individuals will not only be representing the importance of donation, they will serve as representatives of Oklahoma and the approximately 600 citizens of the state who are waiting on a lifesaving transplant.”
LifeShare encourages everyone across the state to tune-in to watch the 133rd Rose Parade on January 1.
Karen shares her grateful spirit and the positive attitude to be an encouragement to others. She has always lived a healthy life despite being born with only one kidney.
Karen was active in her community as a full-time teacher, volunteer and Sunday school teacher at her church. In 2010, she learned that her liver was failing, and she was later diagnosed with the Hepatitis C virus.
She was sent home thinking her days were numbered. Despite this news, she clung to her faith and began eating even healthier than she had before the diagnosis. Luckily, an antiviral medication came out and she was cured of Hepatitis C by 2011 but end-stage liver failure still loomed over Karen.
Karen went back to her career as a teacher and continued to live as healthy as possible. During one of her screenings, the doctor determined that her damaged liver was not removing toxins from her blood, which diminished her mental capabilities. She also became limited on what she could do as she frequently had muscle fatigue, liver pain and joint pain.
After learning to manage her pain, Karen’s health began to worsen. When she was at her regular check-ups, the doctors found a cancerous tumor on her liver. Her doctors recommended a liver transplant, and amid the listing process, she began to make end-of-life plans with her daughter. To cheer their spirits, they began to look online at stories of hope from others who had received a transplant. Karen was encouraged and continued to eat healthy meals and walk when she could.
When Karen was fully listed on the transplant waiting list, she was grateful to think that at someone’s greatest crisis in life they would make a decision that would eventually grant her many more years to live. She was so humbled that she called her transplant coordinator and almost asked them to remove her from the list.
As she waited for a second chance at life, Karen underwent many procedures to shrink the tumor on her liver so that she could remain on the transplant waiting list. Twice, Karen was called in hopes that she would receive her liver, but neither offer was a good fit.
However, on April 13, 2015, Karen received her liver from a selfless donor and learned that her donor was the same age as many of the students she once taught in school.
Karen is a motivation to many. She encourages others waiting to receive their life saving transplant, and she spends her time teaching nutrition classes. The classes help those struggling with kidney or liver disease learn to eat better to live a healthier life. In addition, she also serves on a variety of boards and committees to help people with health needs and those in the transplant community. With her renewed health, Karen is thrilled to be back in the classroom teaching full-time.
Driven to honor her donor, Karen participated in the 2016 Transplant Games of America and the 2017 World Transplant Games. She began entering 5K runs to raise awareness for organ donation. She also is more adventurous and does things she wouldn’t have tried before to honor her donor and his life.
Most of all, this second chance in life has given Karen the opportunity and privilege to be involved in her grandkids' lives, and she is thankful for the chance to be a sister, mother and wife. She is grateful to be honored on the Donate Life Rose Parade Float on New Year’s Day.
The 2022 float features stylized Venetian colonnades, inspired by the Palazzo Ducale or Doges’ Palace in Venice. These ornate porticos will be adorned with memorial floral portraits, honoring the gift of life and hope given by organ, eye and tissue donors.
Venice’s quintessential gondolas will carry organ, eye and tissue recipients, as they continue sailing in their life journey, thanks to their donors’ gifts. Living donors and recipients will walk alongside the float. A lush dedication garden features individually dedicated roses and will complete the beautiful Venetian scene, along with blue and white waves, representing the flowing Venice canals.
As the world's most visible campaign to inspire organ, eye and tissue donation, the Donate Life Rose Parade float inspires viewers to save and heal more than one million people in need of organ, eye and tissue transplants each year.
“We are honored to have two Oklahomans to represent organ, eye and tissue donation this year at the Rose Parade,” said Jeffrey Orlowski, President and Chief Executive Officer of LifeShare of Oklahoma. “With a U.S. television audience in the tens of millions and a worldwide audience in the hundreds of millions, these individuals will not only be representing the importance of donation, they will serve as representatives of Oklahoma and the approximately 600 citizens of the state who are waiting on a lifesaving transplant.”
LifeShare encourages everyone across the state to tune-in to watch the 133rd Rose Parade on January 1.
