Missy Rodriguez

Type of Donation:       liver recipient

Age and Location:      Age 49 – Short Hills, NJ

Date of Transplant:           3/04/1985

Sponsor:                      Honored by NJ Sharing Network Foundation

MISSY’S STORY

At the age of ten, Missy Rodriguez received a successful life-saving liver transplant. Today, Missy thrives in her professional, social, and athletic pursuits.



Missy went to great lengths to keep her medical history a secret for most of her life. However, in 2015, Missy had a dramatic change of heart after she underwent emergency surgery. She decided it was "her turn to give rather than receive." Since then, Missy has turned her passion into purpose as an advocate for organ donation. She serves as a mentor, priding herself as a resource for pre and post-transplant patients.



Missy is a certified volunteer for N.J. Sharing Network and principal for Missy's Miracle Scholarship Fund. This Sharing Network Foundation program supports programs that raise awareness for organ and tissue donation and provides scholarships for high school students touched by the foundation's life-saving mission. To date, she has raised over $120,000.



Missy is a well-recognized community volunteer and advocate for donation and transplantation. She has been featured in dozens of television and print news media spotlights and acknowledged for her charitable efforts by local neighborhood businesses, alliances, and religious institutions. Her efforts have also been publicly recognized by the Township of Millburn, NJ, with an official Proclamation. Missy also participates in N.J. Sharing Network's 5K Celebration of Life and has won gold medals in tennis at the Transplant Games of America as a member of Team Liberty.



Missy is approaching the fortieth anniversary of her transplant – a milestone that will make her one of the longest liver transplant survivors in history.



Missy earned a B.A. from Emory University and an M.A. and Ed.M. from Columbia University, where she graduated at the top of her class. She has a successful career as the owner of an educational consultant business. She is an avid tennis player and former Varsity Tennis coach who has been recognized as County and Conference Coach of the Year. Missy resides in Short Hills, NJ, with her husband, Brett, and their three sons, Jesse, Reece, and Mack.