For Nicole Schwartz, donating her placenta was a simple decision. “My father received a lifesaving liver transplant a few years ago after a liver cancer diagnosis,” she says. “I’m also in the healthcare field and have worked with donor patients and families and know donation is such a special gift. Hopefully, my placenta donation can help someone else.”

For the delivery of her second child, Connor, Nicole underwent a scheduled C-section, which made placenta donation a possibility. “I had an emergency C-section with my first pregnancy, which was scary,” she says. “Having Connor’s C-section planned was much more controlled and it allowed even more good to come from something as beautiful as childbirth. I’m so happy someone else will benefit from Connor’s birth by using the placenta to improve a life.”

Nicole hopes that more people will choose to donate their birth tissue, including placenta and umbilical cords. “There are still so many myths about donation today,” she says. “I encourage others to do their research about any kind of organ and tissue donation. It’s such a wonderful gift.”

People need people, make a difference in someone’s life by donating blood.

We must rely on each other for the gift of blood, and patients in your community rely on the generosity of Versiti’s blood donors to help. Please consider scheduling an appointment to donate. If this is your first time, donating blood is quick, easy and relatively painless. And, it is a great way to give back and help patients in your community.