NATIONAL DONATE LIFE MONTH-MEMPHIS,TN-LINKING HANDS FOR LIFE GOES STATEWIDE ACROSS TENNESSEE TO CELEBRATE APRIL AS NATIONAL DONATE LIFE MONTH

LINKING HANDS FOR LIFE GOES STATEWIDE ACROSS TENNESSEE TO CELEBRATE APRIL AS NATIONAL DONATE LIFE MONTH

MEMPHIS, Tennessee – April 5, 2010 – LINKING HANDS FOR LIFE will go statewide this year on Sunday, April 18, 2010 in all major cities across Tennessee. The event will celebrate April as National Donate Life Month, an officially sanctioned month of education that enables the state’s two organ procurement organizations (OPOs) to step-up their yearlong efforts to educate the public about the critical shortage of donated organs and tissue for transplantation. There are currently more than 106,000 men, women and children on the national list awaiting life-saving transplants. 2,322 live in Tennessee. Sadly, 18 people will die needlessly each day because the organ they needed did not come in time.

All friends of organ, tissue blood donor families, transplant recipients and families, hospital partners, and community advocates for donation across Tennessee are invited to join us for the first annual statewide ‘LINKING HANDS FOR LIFE’. It will be held on Sunday, April 18, 2009 at 1:30 CST/2:30 EST (Rain or shine) in the following cities and locations:
Memphis: Overton Park
Jackson: Jackson/Madison Hospital Courtyard Amphitheater
Nashville: Church Street Greenway
Chattanooga: Girls Preparatory School

Knoxville: Webb High School Courtyard

Johnson City: Millenium Centre

Everyone will join hands and form a symbolic chain of remembrance and thanksgiving to represent the Cycle of Life. Biodegradable balloons will be given for all to release in memory of thanksgiving of those who gave the Gift of Life. Organ donation and transplantation is all about LIFE. Following the release, activities are planned in each city

Those participating are encouraged to bring along as many family members and friends as possible. Bring a sign, poster, picture or something to show the public your remembrance of a loved one that was a donor and/or a message supporting organ and tissue donation. Wear a family t-shirt or family colors if you have them.

The event started in Memphis four years ago and has now grown statewide. It is hoped to become a national celebration in the near future.

According to Kim Van Frank, Executive Director of Mid-South Transplant Foundation: “Tennesseans can now register as donors when they get or renew their driver’s license or state I.D. at Department of Safety Driver’s License Centers and online at www.tndonorregistry.org. A small red heart is placed on the driver’s license, signifying them as an organ donor.”

As of March 1, 2010; 1,387,518 Tennesseans have signed up on the Donate Life Tennessee Organ & Tissue Donor Registry. Nearly 3500 people are added each week. In 2009 Tennessee ranked third in the nation for the fastest growing state donor registries at a rate of 14% annually.

Donate Life Tennessee is a non-profit, state-authorized organ and tissue donor registry, administered by the state’s two organ procurement organizations (OPO), responsible for facilitating the donation process in Tennessee: Tennessee Donor Services and Mid-South Transplant Foundation. The Donate Life Registry assures that all personal information is kept confidential and stored in a secure database, accessible only to authorized OPO personnel.

National research shows that although 98% of Americans support donation, only 30% know the essential steps to take to become a donor. Others allow misconceptions, fears and misinformation to prevent them from making a decision. Many people don’t realize that age or pre-existing medical conditions do not exclude you from being a suitable organ and tissue donor. In fact, there has been a 93-year-old kidney donor and a 99-year-old cornea donor! Medical specialists will evaluate your medical history at the appropriate time to determine your suitability to donate. Donation shows no favoritism. No one group or race receives an organ more easily than another. Organ and tissue donation does not cost the donor or the donor’s family anything. All major religions of the world support donation as being a humanitarian act.

Everyday people’s lives have been miraculously affected by the gift of an organ. These life changes were made possible because someone made the decision to donate LIFE. You, too, have the power to donate LIFE and make a difference.