From staff reports / Kaufman Herald

In September 2006, Scurry-Rosser Middle School student Matthew Lumpkin, age 13, was a front seat passenger in a car that went off the road and hit a tree. Matthew had a major head injury and was declared brain-dead within hours, leaving his mother with a decision she never thought she'd have to make for him.

Would she be willing to donate his organs?

Cheryl Lumpkin, Matthew's mother, didn't hesitate: "Where do I sign?"

She told Southwest Transplant Alliance, a nonprofit organ transplant organization, to use as many of her son's organs and tissue as possible. Later, the family would get a letter telling her how many people had been helped because of this decision.

For her the decision was simple, but not every family can agree on what to do.

"The family is in shock and stunned, there are so many questions being asked and you are afraid of making the wrong decision," Lumpkin said.

"It's really hard for them to say yes at a time like that," said Pam Silvestri, spokeswoman for Southwest Transplant Alliance, one of three organ procurement organizations in the state.

The question poses problems even if family members know their relative wanted to be a donor, she said.

"Sometimes the family still had a hard time saying yes because of the emotions they were going through," Silvestri said.

Families no longer have to make that choice because of a recently revamped state-maintained registry.

The Glenda Dawson Donate Life Texas Registry began in 2005. It started out as the Donor Education, Awareness and Registry of Texas, but it was renamed in September for the state representative who led the push for the database. The registry was renamed after the Web site was changed to become more user-friendly, Silvestri said.

Joining the registry means that there is no question about a person's wishes when it comes to donating organs.

In the past, a person indicated intent to be a donor by putting a sticker on his driver's license. That method was discontinued about eight years ago, for a few reasons, Silvestri explained.

Under the previous system, family members could overrule a person's intent to be an organ donor, she said.

"Consent rates were definitely getting better," Silvestri said, "but there were enough times when families said no, and either went home and found a donor card or remembered the person had told them, that we really wanted to give people a way to make sure their wishes were being carried out."

Another reason the registry replaced the driver's license sticker was because of a pervasive, but unfounded, fear that medical caregivers who saw a donor sticker might not try as hard to save a person's life, Silvestri said.

With the registry, that's not an issue. Medical personnel don't know if a patient is on the list until after the person has been declared brain-dead and organ donation is a possibility, Silvestri said.

She added that although the registry is the only way to ensure that a person be considered an organ donor, talking to family is still crucial.

"The most important thing if you want to be a donor is to have a conversation with your family," Silvestri said. "But if you're not sure they'd be able to follow that, then being on the registry is the best bet and will definitely take the burden off family for having to make that decision."

Shela Dawson, a registered nurse, knows just how often that dilemma comes up in a hospital.

Dawson, now the director of health services at LeTourneau University, previously worked in Good Shepherd Medical Center's intensive care unit.

"Being a nurse in ICU, you see it every day," said the Longview resident, who recently joined the registry.

"People often die suddenly and tragically that are able to donate their organs and save another individual's life," Dawson said.

"But it's hard for grieving families to think about", she said.

That's why having an official registry and signing up for it is vital, she said.

"It's just so important, and easy to do," Dawson said. "It takes just a few minutes of your time, and (joining the registry) will also give you something in your hand to explain to your family members exactly what you want when you die."

Since Matthew Lumpkin's death, his family members have made it a point to share their wishes.

"This is not normal dinner-time conversation, but now I realize that it is important to let your family know how you feel," Lumpkin said. "Talking about it is not going to make you die any sooner or later, but you will be better prepared when it does happen."

Lumpkin, who lives in Scurry, has signed up for the registry, in addition to discussing it with her loved ones.

"You never get over watching someone you love die, but you can learn to live with it," Lumpkin said. "Knowing that Matthew was able to be an organ donor, knowing that in the big picture some good has come from this tragedy, helps me to heal."