Waldorf alumni to honor late son with portrait on Rose Parade float

Jody (holding portrait) and Rick Dosser (right) and members
of their extended family helped decorate the floragraph of their son Jermiah.
 (Submitted photo)

Waldorf College graduates Jody and Rick Dosser, (Class of 1971), will honor their late son in a special way during the Rose Parade on Jan. 1 in Pasadena, Calif.

They were selected by Donate Life America to have a memorial floragraph portrait of their son Jermiah on the Donate Life float. Donate Life is a national organization that advocates for organ, eye and tissue donation. Jody will ride on the float.


An image of Jermiah, who was killed when a driver of a pick-up truck rear-ended his motorcycle at a stoplight in 2007, will be one of 60 similar portraits on the float. He was 24 when he died.

Jermiah, a 2006 Waldorf graduate, made his wishes known that he wanted to be an organ donor. Surgeons harvested his corneas and other tissue.

Jody and Rick and members of their extended family helped decorate Jermiah’s floragraph in early December in Pasadena, Calif. They were told that the Donate Life float will follow behind the Rose Queen and her court as approximately the 10^th float in the parade lineup.

Jody coached volleyball and served as chairwoman of the physical education department for seven years at Waldorf before retiring in 2008. 

Jermiah's death drove her to become an advocate for organ donations. Six months after his death, Jody and the Waldorf women’s volleyball team organized Donor Awareness Week to promote the state donor registry and support the local Lions Club donor project. The successful event was repeated in 2008.

Her work didn't stop there. In spring 2010, "Jermiah’s Law," championed by Rick and Jody, went into effect in Iowa. The law provides stiffer penalties for drivers who run red lights and unintentionally hurt or kill an individual. Jody will ride on the float in honor of her work as a donor advocate.

Following are some links about Jermiah and the Dossers:

Watch the YouTube video of the Dossers on the Los Angeles NBC News.

Read Jody's float rider story.

Watch a video interview with the Dossers and other families as they prepare float decorations.

For more information about the float and Donate Life, go to http://www.donatelifefloat.org/.