My name is Emily Barkocy and I am a liver receipent. I received my life-saving liver transplant on July 3, 2022, after suddenly being diagnosed with liver and kidney failure at Morristown Hospital. Due to the grave nature of my condition, I was immediately airlifted from Morristown to New York University Langone where my amazing transplant team performed my life-saving transplant surgery on July 3rd. Unfortunately only a few hours later, an arterial bleed in my right kidney caused the team to have to operate again, removing my right kidney and gallbladder. My transplant team at NYU saved my life not only once, but twice, in a matter of two days and I am eternally grateful to them.

Now, almost two years later and for the second year in a row, Team Live(r) Big! wil be participating in NJ Sharing Network’s 5K Celebration of Life to help raise awareness about the importance of organ and tissue donation.

I hope you can join me in New Providence on Sunday, June 9th, or support my fundraising efforts by making a contribution.

Funds raised through the Sharing Network Foundation support families that have been touched by donation and transplantation as well as research and education to help give the gift of life to those in need of life-saving organ and tissue transplants. Over 100,000 people in the United States are waiting for a life-saving transplant and nearly 4,000 live right here in New Jersey. Tens of thousands more need life-enhancing tissue or cornea transplants each year. One organ and tissue donor can save 8 lives and enhance the lives of over 75 others. But the waiting list is long and for many, organ and tissue donation can mean the difference between life and death. Your support brings us one step closer to providing the greatest gift of all… the gift of life.

Thank you for your support and for joining me to honor those who gave, pay tribute to those who received, offer hope to those who continue to wait, and remember the lives lost while waiting for the gift of life. While I do not know the identitiy of my liver donor, I will forever be grateful to him/her and their brave family for giving me a second chance at life.

For more about my story and addtional resources on organ donation, please clck here: https://sites.google.com/mhrd.org/liver-big?usp=sharing