East Brunswick Woman Celebrates 20 Years Since Kidney, Pancreas Transplants

EAST BRUNSWICK, NJ — A 52-year-old East Brunswick resident recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of her life-saving kidney and pancreas transplants.

Robyn Ashmen, a professor at Stevens Institute of Technology, is passionate about advocating for NJ Sharing Network, the nonprofit organization responsible for the recovery and placement of donated organs and tissue in NJ.

Ashmen inspires others by sharing her personal story of overcoming challenges.

April is National Donate Life Month, and Ashmen will speak to her fellow parishioners at St. Bartholomew's Church in East Brunswick following mass, to encourage them to register as organ and tissue donors.

“Right now, there are nearly 4,000 people in New Jersey waiting for a life-saving transplant. Just one organ and tissue donor can save eight lives and enhance the lives of over 75 others,” Ashmen said in a statement.

“Every day, I thank God and my organ donor and his brave mother for the gift of life. We often forget that our actions can have a positive effect on the world. Organ and tissue donation creates a powerful ripple effect on the lives of others and their loved ones.”

At age 16, Ashmen was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. Despite health challenges, the East Brunswick resident earned a bachelor’s degree from Montclair State University, a master’s degree from Seton Hall University and a PhD in Health Science from Drexel University's College of Nursing and Health Professions.

In 2002, just after Ashmen completed her master’s thesis, her health issues became critical, and she had to begin dialysis

“Dialysis was extremely difficult, but I continued to work full time which helped me stay positive and hopeful,” Ashmen said.

A year later she received one of the most important calls of her life, from a nurse at Hackensack University Medical Center.

“I’ll never forget the sound of her voice when she said, ‘Robyn, how would you like a perfectly matched kidney and pancreas?’ I fell to my knees with joy. I was excited and extremely chatty when they wheeled me in for surgery at the hospital. I remember my doctor joking with everyone that ‘somebody needs to shut her up,’” Ashmen said.

Ashmen’s kidney and pancreas transplant surgeries were a success and her donor was a young man from California who died following an accident. Ashmen continues to stay in regular touch with her donor’s mother.

“It feels like he (my donor) is nudging me when he wants me to speak to his mom. There are never enough words to express my gratitude,” Ashmen said.

In 2006, Robyn suffered a major health setback when she lost kidney function due to the BK virus. She then experienced yet another life-changing moment.

“I went to see my doctor when we noticed that my stomach had popped out a bit. I was shocked when an ultrasound showed that I was five months pregnant. My doctors were even more surprised than my husband and me,” Ashmen said.

"The last two months of my pregnancy, I needed to go back on dialysis which was not easy when you are pregnant and driving to dialysis six days per week - driving from East Brunswick to Hackensack.”

On June 16, 2010, her daughter Olivia Ashmen was born via emergency C-section. Despite arriving prematurely at 30-weeks, Olivia proved to be a strong fighter.

“The medical team was expecting the worst. They called Olivia ‘a miracle baby’ because she was breathing room air - she was never intubated and her lungs were fine,” she said.

Two years after Olivia’s birth, Ashmen received a second successful kidney transplant. This time, her living donor hero was her cousin.

Today, Ashmen’s kidney and pancreas continue to function perfectly. She and her fiancée, Howard Woods, are looking forward to their wedding later this year.

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