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Guidelines for Letter Writing from Recipients to Donor Family

Many recipients struggle with the decision to write to their donor family. They just don't know how to say "thank you" for such a precious gift. Donor families do appreciate and often find comfort in knowing the transplant was successful.

The New Mexico Lions Eye Bank encourages and facilitates all correspondence between donor families and cornea recipients. We protect the anonymity of both the donor families and the recipients. If you would like to write a letter to the recipient of your loved ones corneas, please use the letter writing guidelines below.

The decision to write to your donor’s family is a very personal one. If you decide to write or send a card, here are some suggestions:

* Write about yourself. You may want to include your name (first name only) and information about your job, your family and friends, your hobbies and interests and the name of the state you reside in.

* Write about your personal transplant experience. You may want to include information about your disease and how a transplant has affected your life.

* You may wish to thank your donor family.

* Sign only your first name.

* Keep identities anonymous and confidential. Avoid including any last names, street addresses, city names, phone numbers, or names of hospitals or physicians. On occasion, donor families and transplant recipients may wish to reveal identities to each other. Both must agree to this before any personal information will be released by the eye bank.

After you have completed your letter or card, place it in an unsealed envelope.

Include a separate sheet of paper with your full name, date of your transplant, and the name of your surgeon. Mail both your letter or card and the separate note to:

New Mexico Lions Eye Bank, 2501 Yale Blvd., SE Albuquerque, NM 87106

All letters are reviewed to ensure confidentiality before the letter is forwarded to the donor family. Some donor families may send a letter or card in response to your letter. Others may choose not to write to you at this time - this is their personal decision. If you have any questions or concerns about this information, please contact the New Mexico Lions Eye Bank.