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Laura Shrode (‘16) never thought a degree from Saint John’s Graduate School of Theology and Seminary (SOT/Sem) would help her fulfill her dream of working in a hospital. Only doctors and nurses can work with patients, right? Wrong.
Previously a Hospital Chaplain at the Saint Cloud Hospital in St. Cloud, MN, Shrode ministered and cared for patients and families through joyous and difficult moments. Now, you can see Christ’s light shining through some end-of-life moments and complex situations as Laura ministers through Life Source – a non-profit organization in Minneapolis, MN, that works with organ, eye, and tissue donation. “Organ donation is not how it’s portrayed on TV Shows,” she expressed.
Families need support as they make these unplanned tough decisions during the last moments of a loved one’s life. Therefore, Laura serves as the calm and understanding support they need, walking with families through the donation process and ministering to their spirit during this tough time. Some hospitals hold an ‘honor walk.’ This is when hospital staff silently line the hallways as the family’s loved one is wheeled from the hospital room to the operating room for the donation surgery. Part of Laura’s role is walking with family members through the procession and being present with them as they say their final goodbyes at the operating room doors. Laura describes this experience in a short yet profound sentence: “It is sad and eerily beautiful.”
Laura radiates Christ’s love while she walks with families through the process of Organ Donation.
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