Of utmost concern are the families of donors who allow us to procure the gift of tissue for transplant. In conjunction with bereavement support professionals, STBTC has created a bereavement program (BEST) which helps ease the family’s transition due to the loss of a loved one. Seminars and workshops, presented by grief counselors, clergy and health care professionals, are offered throughout the year. More than 5,000 individuals have been helped by these services.

BEST programs were designed as an informal means of learning about the grieving process and knowing that we are not alone in this struggle. Each BEST program topic and presenter is carefully selected based on what participants tell us they want or feel they need to understand as they grieve. BEST programs are informal. You will find an atmosphere that is comfortable and one in which you may choose to participate or sit quietly and just listen. Staff members of the South Texas Blood & Tissue Center are always present to assist you in any way possible.

Mary Beth Fisk, Vice President of Development and Tissue Services, works with the BEST committee, which is comprised of a group of community volunteers that includes families, counseling professionals, an ethicist, interdenominational clergy, and STBTC staff.

“We invite all of our donor families and anyone in the community who would find comfort in these programs to join us," Fisk says. "We are so grateful for the generosity of these wonderful families who have enabled us to build a viable tissue program that serves patients in so many ways. Heart valves, veins, tendons, skin and bones offer new hope to another child, parent or sibling - it is a profound thing."

For more information on the BEST program, please contact Elizabeth Clark at (210) 731-5566.