Eric Steger is a remarkable person. This 55-year-old teacher and math tutor from Palo Alto, Calif. has saved two lives – with two different types of transplants – and if it should work out, he hopes he will someday donate for a third transplant as well.
“I joined Gift of Life in 2005 at the L’chaim Street Fair in Palo Alto,” said Eric. “Even though I understood the odds were good that I would never be called as a donor, I wanted to help someone live if I ever did match a patient.”
Less than two years later, Eric got his first chance to save a life. Gift of Life called to say he had matched a woman diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a form of blood cancer, and he was asked to donate stem cells. It was her best chance of recovery.
“I was working at a high school and my employer gave me a few days off and didn’t even charge it to my PTO,” said Eric. Gift of Life scheduled his collection at the City of Hope Cancer Center in Southern California. “It just takes some patience to sit still. I watched a few movies, and after it was over, took a long walk and had a nap to recover.”
Eric listening to music while donating stem cells in 2007.
As with all donors, there was no cost to Eric, and Gift of Life organized his appointments and travel arrangements.
“This stem cell donation was one of the greatest things I’ve ever done,” he said. But although Eric and his recipient exchanged one letter each, he believes she prefers to remain anonymous.
“My letter from her is one of my most prized possessions, and I am always open to the possibility that we might meet in the future,” he said.
However, that is just the beginning of a longer story!
“In addition to saving someone’s life, it inspired me to make other donations,” said Eric. “I have now donated platelets and plasma an average of once a month since 2008.”
Eric learned about a new, altruistic liver donation program and thought that was something he could do. He reached out to Chaya Lipschutz, a Brooklyn kidney donor who has made it her mission to find matches for those needing kidney or liver organ transplants. Through her organization, Eric was able to be medically cleared in advance as a living liver donor, which involves transplanting a portion of the donor’s liver to the recipient. For the donor, the liver will grow back to its original size over time; for the recipient, it will replace the diseased liver and grow large enough to restore normal liver function.
At that time, Rabbi Jeffrey Kurtz-Lendner was in need of such a liver transplant, and his sister saw a notice on Lipschutz’s message board that a donor was available. The match was arranged, the donor and recipient were compatible, and the procedure took place.
Eric and Rabbi Kurtz-Lendner were able to meet after the transplant during the recovery period.
“Liver donation was my finest hour – and I slept right through it!” Eric told his recipient.
Today, Eric hopes to do still more for others: he has not yet been able to make a kidney donation, but that is not for lack of trying. It simply has not worked out yet, but he has hope it will in the future.
“Donating stem cells through Gift of Life was my first successful, life-saving experience,” said Eric. “Coming home from that donation in Los Angeles, I felt that was a defining moment for me. I could always look back on this huge mitzvah and know that I had stepped up and done something really great. I had no idea at the time I would ever have another opportunity to help others, but new chances to help out presented themselves, and I’m glad I’ve taken them.”
Eric was featured in the news several times after his liver donation.
Eric has received multiple recognitions for his many donations over time. He is very active in the Chabad synagogue, and enjoys a range of hobbies including hiking, playing chess, reading, and collecting rare coins.