COLTS NECK, NJ — A lifelong Colts Neck resident will be honored with the NJ Chamber of Commerce’s 2024 Nonprofit Advocate Award in October.
Carolyn Welsh, 53, is the president and CEO of the NJ Sharing Network.
Established in 1987, the network serves as the designated organ procurement organization for most of New Jersey and works with local hospitals to facilitate the gift of organ and tissue donation.
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After graduating from Seton Hall with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, Welsh first joined the network in 1999 as a hospital services manager in hopes of finding a career aimed at helping people.
“I answered an ad in the classified section of the Asbury Park Press,” Welsh said. “And when I read it, I just said ‘Wow, organ donation. You know, that’s a good thing. I think I could make a difference there.’”
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“And that’s really all it was,” Welsh continued. “I knew nothing about it [organ donation] before, and it was probably divine intervention that brought me here to spend 25 years in this career.”
As the 2024 Nonprofit Advocate Award recipient, Welsh will be honored alongside 11 other women at the 2024 Women of Inspiration Awards reception on Oct. 24.
According to the NJ Chamber of Commerce website, the awards recognize “women who are inspiring leaders or advocates in the state’s business community.”
Since joining NJ Sharing Network, Welsh has not only been recognized by the chamber but was also named on lists such as NJBIZ’s New Jersey’s Best 50 Women in Business, NJBIZ’s Health Care Power 50 and ROI-NJ’s Health Care Influencers list.
Yet throughout her awards and recognitions, Welsh said it’s truly helping people that matters the most to her.
“It really is a gift to be able to help others at their worst time,” Welsh said. “For me, it’s about the people — the people that we serve, the donor families and also the staff.”
Alongside those that Welsh works with each day, Welsh said the Colts Neck community has been another vital part of her journey.
“Colts Neck has always been very supportive,” Welsh said. “I grew up in Colts Neck my whole life — I live there now and bought the house I grew up in. It’s the best place.”
Since joining the NJ Sharing Network, Welsh said a good thing about her work is her ability to give back to the Colts Neck community directly. When residents see her name in the news or on social media, Welsh said they’re able to reach out to her, ask questions and get the help they need.
“With any medical diagnosis, people really kind of get lost,” Welsh said. “There’s been people in town or even close towns that have had people pass away, that get asked a question about donation and they may say ‘oh, am I doing the right thing?’ Or, ‘can I get connected?’ Or maybe they were in the hospital for three days and you don’t remember everything everybody told you.”
It’s at these times that Welsh said she likes to take calls from people and meet them where they’re at.
Even if she’s just walking someone through the organ donation process, Welsh said it’s important to show compassion and give people the chance to speak with someone who can help.
“The community has always supported me,” Welsh said. “So I give back to the community by answering when they give me a call.”
To learn more about Welsh and the NJ Sharing Network, you can visit their website.
The 2024 Women of Inspiration Awards Reception will take place on Oct. 24 at the National Conference Center in East Windsor.
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