Funeral service professionals: Your vital role in donation
Making a difference for families and changing lives
As a funeral service professional, you have an important role in life-giving organ, eye and tissue donation, and supporting individuals and their families who make this decision to donate and help others. Our dedicated Partner Relations team is here for you, working with funeral service partners throughout Illinois and northwest Indiana to make this possible.
Resources we provide
Gift of Hope provides support and resources for funeral service providers. For more information and to request resources or materials, e-mail Gift of Hope’s Partner Relations team.
Reimbursement
for the embalming of tissue donors.
Transportation
of donors to the funeral home.
Resources and materials
including brochures, flags, bracelets and pins to recognize the legacies of donors at memorial and demonstrate your support for the families of donors.
Continuing education and networking
on the donation process, techniques and advances for funeral directors, embalmers, forensic pathologists and coroners.
Gift of Hope is here for you
Learn about the donation process
Through ongoing communication, collaboration and education, we ensure that every last wish and decision to be an organ and tissue donor is honored, and every opportunity to save and enhance lives is realized.
Learn about our Donor Family Services
Gift of Hope’s dedicated Donor Family Service specialists provide the families of donor with ongoing information, support and resources from the time of donation, for as long as they seek our support.
News & events
Gift of Hope offers education on the donation process to funeral home staff, embalmers, coroners, pathologists and other death care and law enforcement professionals.
Contact your Gift of Hope Partner Relations liaison to learn more about the programs and resources described below.
Please check back for updates as programs and events are scheduled.
Past events
Here’s a look at some of the past programs and events Gift of Hope’s Partner Relations team has offered for and in collaboration with forensic professionals and funeral directors in Illinois and northwest Indiana.
Cook County Funeral Director Conference
Funeral service professionals enjoyed a day of continuing education and networking in the office of the Cook County Medical Examiner. The full day featured presentations on topics including forensic pathology, working with the CCME and the organ and tissue donation process.
Coroner Collaborative
Coroners and their staff members enjoyed a day of collaboration on best practice, continuing education and networking. Gift of Hope partnered with the Will County Coroner’s office to host this state wide event.
Optimizing Tissue Recovery to Meet Surgical Needs Webinar
Speakers from a tissue bank and Gift of Hope shared useful information about the donation and tissue recovery processes, focusing on the steps taken to optimize tissue donation.
McHenry County Funeral Director Conference
Funeral service professionals enjoyed a day of continuing education and networking in McHenry County. This event was co-sponsored by the McHenry County Coroner’s Office and Gift of Hope.
From Donor to Recipient: Clinical Uses of Dermal Allografts webinar
Attendees learned how donated organs are matched with people awaiting transplants and clinical uses for allografts from tissue donors.
Kane County Funeral Director Conference
Funeral service professionals enjoyed a day of continuing education and networking in Kane County. This event was co-sponsored by the Kane County Coroner’s Office and Gift of Hope.
Interpersonal Skills for Funeral Arranging webinar
Funeral service professionals learned to eliminate barriers to effective communication, build trust, improve helping skills and more.
Donation and the Funeral Director: Honoring a Family’s Wishes
Funeral service professionals learned about the donation recovery process and specialized embalming techniques.
Barb Dolan
Manager, Partner Relations
[email protected]
630/758-2791
Debbie DeVito
Supervisor, Partner Relations
[email protected]
630/758-2795
Tony Cusinato
Partner Relations & Transportation Liaison
[email protected]
847/207-8686
Gina Martin
Partner Relations Liaison
[email protected]
309/370-0353
Melinda Asher
Partner Relations Liaison
[email protected]
210/289-0654
Your partnership saves lives
Your collaboration with Gift of Hope makes organ and tissue donation possible. If you are not already a registered organ and tissue donor, make this live-changing decision today.
