Father Tavarro (above left), wearing a brown "St. Joseph" shirt, can be seen at the right side of the float. Directly behind him is the "gift box".

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Father Elly Tavarro

Saint Joseph Hospital Patient Profiles
Kidney Transplant Center

Father Elly Tavarro

Fifteen years ago, Elly Tavarro, a young chaplain, became the "chosen one" in more than one way.

His sister, Ritcha, was a nurse at St. Joseph Hospital when she developed kidney problems following the delivery of her first child.

However, after delivering her second child at the age of 33, Ritcha's kidney problems worsened and she experienced complete kidney failure.She turned to her six siblings for help, but Elly was the only donor match.

Father Elly, who was then living in the Phillipines, journeyed to St. Joseph Hospital for the surgery. On December 21, 1990, Father Elly and his sister underwent the surgery for the kidney transplant. Father Elly remembers the day like it was yesterday. After waking from surgery, he asked the nurse if his sister was okay. The nurse responded, "Of course she is okay, she received a holy kidney from a priest." Both siblings have remained in great health ever since the transplant. Today, Ritcha is a nurse in Saudi Arabia.

Three months following surgery, Father Elly applied to be a chaplain at St. Joseph Hospital, the same place where the surgery took place and, has been a priest there ever since. To this day, St. Joseph Hospital continuously asks Father Elly to share his experience and provide guidance to living donors. His message is, "God does not want your organs in heaven. He doesn't need your body; he only needs your soul."

As a result of his organ donation and his work at St. Joseph Hospital over the past 15 years, Father Elly was honored by St. Joseph Hospital and One Legacy, a nonprofit transplant donor network serving 18 million people throughout Southern California. As an honoree, he rode on the 2007 Donate Life Rose Parade Float. In fact, he was the first priest ever to do so.

Father Elly and others have made a life-saving difference through organ donation.

Source: http://www.sjo.org/Clinical_Services/Kidney_Transplant_Center/Patient_Testimonials.aspx

Float Decoration

Living kidney donor
Age 50 ~ Orange, CA
Priest/Chaplain

Three months after donating a kidney to his sister Richa in 1990, Father Elly applied to be a chaplain at St. Joseph Hospital, the same place where the surgery took place. He has been a priest there ever since. His message is, “God does not want your organs in heaven. He doesn’t need your body; he only needs your soul.”

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Father Elly and Ritcha's Story

Sixteen years ago, Elly Tavarro, then a young chaplain in the Philippines, became the “chosen one” in more ways than one. His sister, Richa, developed kidney problems following the delivery of her first child. After delivering her second child at the age of 33, Richa’s kidney problems progressed until she experienced complete kidney failure. She turned to her six siblings for help, but Elly was the only donor match. One of their sisters, Lilita Benitez, was working as a nurse at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, CA. Because of renowned transplant care at that hospital, Lilita inquired whether Richa could be transplanted there, and the hospital consented.

Before the parade Brother and sister journeyed to the U.S. for the life-saving surgery. Father Elly remembers the day as if it were yesterday. After waking from surgery, he asked the nurse if his sister were okay. The nurse responded, “Of course she is okay, she received a holy kidney from a priest.” Both siblings have remained in great health ever since the transplant. Today, Richa is a nurse in Saudi Arabia. Three months following surgery, Father Elly applied to be a chaplain at St. Joseph Hospital and has been a priest there ever since. He currently serves as the Renal Center chaplain, and Lilita is still a nurse there as well. To this day, St. Joseph Hospital asks Father Elly to share his experience and provide guidance to living donors. A great deal of his job is counseling living donors and recipients about their decisions and their questions and to give them the same encouragement and support he received 16 years ago. “When these people come to me, they are scared,” says Father Elly. “But after they learn I am a donor, you can see a glow of recognition in their eyes. It’s good for them to actually meet a living donor. It shows them it is possible.” Father Elly’s message is clear: “God does not want your organs in heaven. He doesn’t need your body. He only needs your soul.”

Source: http://www.donatelifefloat.org/prod/components/media_center/float_riders/tavarro.html

Catholic Health World, January 15, 2007
Volume 23, Number 1

Fr. Elly Tavarro, chaplain of St. Joseph Hospital in Orange, CA, expected jubilant crowds to line the Pasadena, CA, sidewalks for the 2007 Tournament of Roses Parade. Fr. Tavarro, an organ donor and passenger on the "Donate Life" float, was unprepared for the crowd's emotional reaction. Some spectators cried, others shouted, "Thank you guys for saving lives" to the 23 donors and the families of donors waving from atop the float. Fans in the grandstands rose to their feet out of respect for those who had saved lives.

Fr. Tavarro donated a kidney to a younger sister in 1990 in a surgery performed at St. Joseph. A few days before the New Year's parade, Fr. Tavarro handed out roses to dialysis patients, kidney donors, and staff at the hospital's renal center. In exchange for flowers, Fr. Tavarro collected signatures on a windbreaker he wore in the parade. "I wanted to carry them with me," he said.

Source: http://www.chausa.org/Pub/MainNav/News/CHW/Archive/2007/0115/Articles/w070115g.htm