Hi! My name is Colleen and in April I will be donating a portion of my liver to a stranger in need who is on the transplant list. I donated a kidney to a stranger in 2013 and it was the best thing I've ever done, and I'm excited to continue this journey to again help someone potentially extend their life.

I am fortunate to have short-term disability to cover my salary (will be in recovery for 2-3 months) and a grant to cover the majority of my related travel costs (I will be undergoing surgery at the University of Pittsburgh and live in Boston). However, I live alone and have two small dogs, and I will be restricted for 12 weeks to not lift more than 10 lbs and to not take the dogs on walks, due to the risk of developing a hernia as I recover. In addition, for the two weeks I'm required to be in Pittsburgh I will need my dogsitter to stay with my babies. So these funds raised here would cover dog walks for three months and my dogsitter for the initial two weeks.

Any money raised beyond the amount needed for dogcare will go toward costs related to followup trips to Pittsburgh, which I will need to do at 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years, food in Pittsburgh for my caregivers and I, and/or supplies to assist with the surgery (special pillows, etc).

Thank you for your consideration!