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The Story Behind Blu

10/27/2021

 
Kim and Dave Burdakin, former residents of Muscatine, Iowa, sponsored the creation of Blu. Kim received a liver transplant in 2000 at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics.

Blu was created in 2017 by Kim's brother, Jim Hetzler with Hetz Studio, as part of a public art installation and fundraising campaign called K-9s for Cops. The art campaign memorializes Chicago's fallen officers while supporting the families of officers killed or seriously injured in the line of duty.
Jim created Blu in Kim's honor as a tribute to organ and tissue donation. The Burdakin family donated Blu to the UIHC Transplant Center in gratitude for the specialized care that Kim received and to help continue their efforts to raise awareness of the importance of organ and tissue donation.

We are very thankful that the Burdakin family is in support of The Dragonfly Transplant Fund and we love seeing Blu on display at the UIHC Transplant Center!
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Learn More About Kim's Story

What is Deb Brown’s Legacy?

5/9/2021

 
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Photo and Graphic Design by Read Photography in Cedar Rapids, IA
A legacy is a powerful approach to make a lasting difference. It is a way of creating the future you will not see but believe can be.
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"Ultimately, how we live our life defines our legacy. For Deb, she was a great cook and baker who loved to entertain guests. She loved all animals. She was an avid reader (especially cookbooks and magazines). She spent so much time in her gardens. She had many good friends and she had a way of making the people she was with the center of attention.


As I write this today, April 12th, 2021, it is our 41st wedding anniversary. We spent many beautiful years together that were filled with all kinds of memories of family, traveling, and just simply enjoying our home. She left us physically last year on May 10th, Mother’s Day. She left so many good things behind for us. Now that I have had a year to stand back and reflect, one quality of Deb’s stands out to me. Her courage and tenacity was a quality that speaks best for her. Fifteen years ago, Deb took on breast cancer and, from there, she moved forward. Four years ago, she struggled through the process of a successful liver transplant, and she moved forward again. She was a fighter! Through all of the challenges that she faced, she showed courage through each challenge - time and time again.

Together, we hoped The Dragonfly Transplant Fund that we established would help transplant patients, families, and caregivers. It is our way of saying thank you to organ donors - past, present, and future - and also a way to thank the whole medical staff that guided us through the transplant process. This fund is our legacy, what we wanted to give back for all that we received, and how we both want to be remembered. Most importantly, it is a way of creating the future...Deb’s legacy, my legacy, and our legacy together."

- Ed Brown, Co-Founder of The Dragonfly Transplant Fund


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A Message To Honor of Deb Brown

8/5/2020

 
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"I continue to be moved and inspired by the generosity that Ed and Deb have shown and inspired in others. During her lifetime, Deb was the symbol of what it meant to be resilient and to conquer the challenges life and health threw at her -in particular related to her organ transplant - as they were many. She felt strongly about helping others in her same situation be more resilient and the Dragonfly fund is what was born from that belief. Deb felt so strongly that this cause continue beyond her own days and made it part of her own legacy through her estate.
 
Now, in her honor, Ed and all who give to the Dragonfly fund continue to champion the resiliency of transplant patients and families by supporting the work of our Health Care Heroes at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics through the Dragonfly Fund for Transplant Support."


Alli Ingman
Assistant Vice President, Health Sciences Development
The University of Iowa Center for Advancement


How to Make a Donation in Honor of Deb  Brown

To make a donation to the Dragonfly Transplant Fund through the University of Iowa Center for Advancement in honor of Deb Brown, please click the link below. 
Give Now

A Letter from Logan

7/24/2020

 
Last week, we received a donation with a very special letter included. Thank you to Logan for thinking of us with the Dragonfly Transplant Fund. Your donation means so much to us and the lives of those we hope to improve over the years ahead. 
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"As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands: one for helping yourself, the other for helping others." - Audrey Hepburn

In Memory of Deb Brown

5/12/2020

 
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To make your donation in memory of Deb Brown, co-founder of the Dragonfly Transplant Fund, please send your donation to the address below or click the link to be directed to our online giving platform through the University of Iowa Center for Advancement:
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Dragonfly Transplant Fund
In Memory of Deb Brown
260 33rd Ave SW, Ste M
Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
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Donate Online

Special Messages from the Dragonfly Transplant Fund

“In 2017, when Deb and I decided to establish the Dragonfly Transplant Fund, we had a lot of goals we wanted to accomplish. We wanted to give back, to thank the UIHC team, to promote organ transplant, and to thank our donor. One very important goal was to build something that would live on into the future. We found a niche that a transplant resource center and lounge at UIHC would serve our purpose. The fund has grown to lay the ground work for achieving our goals and will continue on in the years to come. With Deb’s passing this spring, the perpetual torch has been lit - the Dragonfly Transplant Fund will live on into the future! If nothing else, it has been fired up by the support we have received during this difficult time for our family, friends, and supporters. With focusing on helping the families and caregivers of transplant patients, the effect on the overall program will only improve from here. Deb is the matriarch and inspiration; she is the Dragonfly." 

- Ed Brown, Co Founder of the Dragonfly Transplant Fund
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"Deb and Ed started the Dragonfly Transplant Fund (DTF) to honor the gift they had been given and to offer back to those in the greater transplant community where they saw a glaring need – a vision of a place for caregivers to find a nurturing environment while their love ones were recovering from transplantation. Deb enjoyed several years of good health and spirit following her transplant and she and Ed were able to live life to its fullest following her recovery. Deb is no longer with us, and while we share deeply with Ed and his family in their loss, we also share in their commitment to Deb’s unwavering legacy and see the DTF through to its completed mission. Together, they were a force of nature. The UI Organ Transplant Center and the Center for Advancement are eager to help Ed and his close circle of support in this effort." 

- Dr. Alan Reed, Director of the UI Transplant Center & Alli Ingman, Assistant Vice President - Health Services Department of the University of Iowa Center for Advancement
Read More About Deb Brown

Happy Anniversary to Deb & Ed Brown!

4/16/2020

 
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The founders of the Dragonfly Transplant Fund, Deb and Ed Brown of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, had a special reason to celebrate on Sunday, April 12th. Not only was it a very special Easter, but they were celebrating their wedding anniversary. Happy Anniversary, Deb & Ed! 

Send your well wishes to Deb and Ed by email via the link below.
Send Your Message

"A Boy of Many Gifts"

1/7/2020

 

Charles City youth wrestler gives gift of life through organ donation

CHARLES CITY - Logan Luft wanted to be a state championship wrestler. Tragically, that won't ever happen for Luft, but the 15-year-old Charles City native will be remembered forever as a champion of life.

Thank You

12/11/2019

 
It’s been almost two years since the Dragonfly Transplant Fund was founded. We have said "thank you" multiple times to many of you over the last two years, but as the year comes to a close, we want to say it again: THANK YOU! 

We are just the spokespeople for the mission of the Dragonfly Transplant Fund. All the organ donors, the recipients, and the great medical staff at the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics are the reason we work towards the goals of the fund. At the end of the day, the organ donors, the recipients, and the UIHC medical staff are the ones who will make the Dragonfly Transplant Fund's mission and vision to become a reality. They are the true heroes.

As we have become more involved with the transplant cause over the years, we have met groups of people and organizations that have the same heart as we have. The thing we remember is: yes, we can do more and we can make a bigger impact! And we can do even more together. 

In 2020, we will continue to grow the Dragonfly Transplant Fund and inch closer to our goal of a caregivers' suite and providing a tool for education and assistance to transplant patients and their families. Our website is constantly changing and we will be active on social media by year-end – keep checking us out. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for your past, present, and future support of the Dragonfly Transplant Fund. Happy Holidays! 

Sincerely,
​Deb & Ed Brown
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A Message from Jim & Carol Cutler

10/21/2019

 
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"We are neighbors of the Browns and know very well the drama, uncertainty, and frustration involved in the process of waiting for an organ transplant. We received many calls over the long months of waiting since we had to perform duties for an important member of their family every time they had to leave for several hours. The family member is Star, a standard poodle. Our duties included watching and waiting for the proper duties to be performed and the obligatory tennis ball throwing. 
Many of these calls were calls for emergency hospital visits or for trips to the University of Iowa Transplant Center. Then came the multiple calls when they hastily go to the Transplant Center when Deb was one of those called in as a possible recipient of an organ. We, as well as the Browns, anxiously awaited word that perhaps this would be the last trip involving an actual transplant. Finally, the ultimate gift occurred and Star was able to get the rest of her family back home full-time!" - Jim & Carol Cutler

Jack Blong Shares His Dragonfly Transplant Fund Story

10/4/2019

 
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"A few years ago while at a backyard cookout a good friend of mine was asked how long it took him to smoke the pork. He responded in his southern drawl ‘from start to beginning it took me four hours “.  While this is a horrible use of the English language it does do a good job of describing the transplant process. You start the process as a sick person becoming a sicker person every day you remain on the list waiting for your new life to begin.

I witnessed this with my Aunt Deb Brown.  Once she went on the list the waiting began. Waiting for her to be sick enough to get a transplant, waiting for the matching donor, and thankfully waiting for hours at the hospital for the procedure to be done. I have a great appreciation for the need for a dedicated room at UIHC after walking the entire complex with Ed while waiting for news.
Two days after surgery I visited Deb in the hospital and she had completely transformed. she was alert and smiling with the color back in her face.
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I am very proud of the way my uncle and aunt Ed and Deb are using their new beginning in life to give back to others.  Whether it is the dedicated room or transplant awareness the Dragonfly Fund is a charity I will continue to support and be involved with the future." - Jack Blong
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    Volunteers with the Dragonfly Transplant Fund established by Ed and Deb Brown are dedicated to supporting the UIHC Organ Transplant Center through giving. We share their stories, fundraising efforts, and memories here with followers, friends, and family who support the Dragonfly Transplant Fund. 

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    Click here to learn more about the UIHC Transplant Center in Iowa City, Iowa.


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Website sponsored by EJ Brown & Associates

​Contact Us

Phone: (319) 318-2376
Email: dragonflytransplantfund@gmail.com
Mailing Address: 
​260 33rd Ave SW, Ste M, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52404
Donate Now! givetoiowa.org/dragonfly 
NOTE: The University of Iowa Center for Advancement is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization where tax-deductible contributions are identified via tax ID # 42-0796760. 
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