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Organ Donation
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Team Managers and Liaisons
Take a moment to get to know our Team MO-KAN Managers and Liaisons. Our team managers and liaisons provide countless hours of behind the scenes volunteer planning and organization for our team members.
Chris Paxton, Team Co-Manager
Get to know Chris Paxton, Team MO-KAN Co-Manager.
Chris has a degree in Graphic Design from the University of Central Missouri. He received a kidney transplant from his father Greg at the age of 21 as a result of kidney failure brought on by Alport Syndrome. He attended his first transplant games in 1998 and has been attended every games since with the exception of 2012, competing in basketball, bowling, cycling, track and field, 5K run and volleyball. He served as team captain for Team USA Cycling to the World Transplant Games in 2003, in Nancy, France. He has also competed in various international games, including the World Transplant Games in Nancy, France and London, Ontario Canada as well as the Australian National Transplant Games.
Chris resides in Lee’s Summit, Missouri with his wife Valerie.
Ray Gabel, Team Co-Manager
Get to know Ray Gabel, Team MO-KAN Co-Manager.
Ray has a degree in communications from Ottawa University. In 1991, he received his first heart transplant at the age of 24 at Saint Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, MO. Ray led the first transplant team to represent the Kansas City area at the 1992 U.S. Transplant Games hosted by the National Kidney Foundation. He has remained active with Team MO-KAN since 1992 and worked for the Midwest Transplant Network from 1995 until 2016. Ray received an ACL replacement in 2010 and his second heart transplant in 2012.
Ray resides in Overland Park, Kansas with his wife Susan who received a liver transplant in 1995.
Barb Starr, Donor Family Liaison
Get to know Barb Starr, Team MO-KAN Donor Family Liaison.
Barb graduated from Graceland University and earned an RN degree. She is the mother of 4 sons. After the death of her son David in a car accident in 1991 she became active in The Compassionate Friends organization and is now Regional Coordinator for Missouri and 2 counties in Kansas. While employed at Saint Luke’s Hospital she was the co-chair of the Transplant Council, and coordinator of infant loss follow-up for the neonatal ICU. Barbara currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Midwest Transplant Network. As a member of Team MO-KAN, she has attended all the Transplant Games since 1996.
Barb resides in Blue Springs, Missouri.
Marcia Schoenfeld, Donor Family Liaison
Get to know Marcia Schoenfeld, Team MO-KAN Donor Family Liaison.
She attended the University of Kansas and graduated with a BS degree in Elementary Education. She was a classroom teacher in the Hickman Mills School District before spending several years as a stay at home mother. Her husband Stephen, died in 1989 as a result of an automobile accident and became an organ and tissue donor. In returning to the workforce after his death she joined the staff at the Midwest Transplant Network, first as Community Education Coordinator and then as Donor Family Services Coordinator. Her career there spanned 23 years before her retirement in 2015. She attended her first US Transplant Games in 1998 and has attended every Games with the exception of 2012.
Marcia resides in Prairie Village, Kansas with her husband Fred.
Erica Singley, Corneal & Tissue Liaison
Get to know Erica Singley, Team MO-KAN Corneal and Tissue Liaison.
In 1984, Erica received a Cornea Transplant in Madison, WI and has been able to look the world straight in the eye for the last 33 years. She participated in the 2010 U.S. Transplant Games hosted by the National Kidney Foundation and continues to support the games through her work with Team MO-KAN.
Erica resides in Overland Park, Kansas
Miguel Sewer, Diversity and Minority Liaison
Get to know Miguel Sewer, Team MO-KAN Diversity and Minority Liaison.
While in the US Air force in 1979, Miguel got non A non active Hepatsis. He was discharged to the VA. In May 1988, he received a successful liver transplant. While he has spent a number of years working in the medical field, he is currently in school working on a PhD in Administration and writing a thesis on social media and organ donation.
Donor Registration Liaison: Open Position
Please check back for more information on our Donor Registration Liaison.
Our Mission
To raise awareness of the life-saving importance of organ, corneal and tissue donation through the lives of our donor families, living donors, and organ, eye and tissue recipients and those awaiting transplantation in the states of Kansas and Missouri. To increase the number of individuals registering to be organ, eye and tissue donors in Kansas and Missouri by participating in local and regional awareness events promoting organ, eye and tissue donation.
Contact Us
Team MO-KAN
626 NE Clubhouse Drive
Lee’s Summit, MO 64086
Phone: (816) 304-4914
info@teammokan.org