Point Of Honor 5k Raises Awareness For Organ Transplants

Source: ABC 13 WSET

Lynchburg, VA - Hundreds of people in the Lynchburg community laced up their running shoes for the annual Point of Honor 5k.

Most of the 400 runners know someone with an organ transplant, some even had one themselves. They hope if just one person hears their story, maybe another life can be saved.

With one foot in front of the other, they thought about how far they have already come.

"My donor was a 32-year-old mother of two from New Hampshire and now it's because of her that I'm here today," organ transplant recipient David Edmondson said.

"You don't know being a mother. It's just an outpouring of love here," Becky Green, the mother of Trey Green, a transplant recipient said.

She ran with 75 others for Trey.

"He needed a liver and he needed it fast and because of this organization he was able to get one," Kate Fallen said.

Meghan Hodgins' daughter, Kendall, knows what it's like to need an organ. "She had both kidneys removed when she was 18 months old. She had a full year of seven day-a-week dialysis and got her kidney when she was two and a half," Hodgins said.

Because of that kidney donor, Kendall's mom found love. She's engaged to David Edmonson.

"You can think back to a time when you couldn't do it...and it's so different now. If this gets more people to think about organ donation--that's the key," Edmonson said.

All proceeds from Saturday's race will go to organizations that educate the public on the need for organ donors.

The race's organizer says in the four years they have held the 5k, $11,000 has gone towards helping the cause.