By: Mark and Carol Fairall
April 18, 2014
PRESS RELEASE
To: DAILY NEWS SUN - SUN CITY WEST NEWSPAPER
APRIL IS
NATIONAL DONATE LIFE MONTH
National Donate Life Month (NDLM) was instituted in 2003 and is
celebrated every April. The NDLM has many state and national activities in
April to register organ donors that can give the “GIFT OF LIFE.” The Donate Life Flag is flown in April over
hospitals, transplant centers, and all recovery agencies in order to make a
visible and unified statement about the importance of organ donations and to
show the dire need for organ donors.
On March 31, 2014 President
Barack Obama issued the Presidential Proclamation stating: “I
call upon health care professionals, volunteers, educators, government
agencies. Faith-based and community groups, and private organizations to join
forces to boost the number of organ and tissue donors throughout our Nation.” President Obama also stated that more than
120,000 Americans are on the transplant list but 18 of them die every day
waiting. Every donor can save eight lives thanks to scientific advances.
Lastly, the President urged the Public visit www.organdonor.gov
or sign up in your State’s donor registry. The President stated: “As a
Nation, let us shine a light on the power of donation. Let us lift up the
friends and families of donors and remember those who ensured that in their
death, others received life.”
Some organ donation facts from DONATE LIFE AMERICA are:
1. An average of
79 organ transplants take place every day in the United States
2. Over 46,000
patients had their sight restored last year through corneal transplants.
3. A living donor
can provide a kidney or a portion of their liver, lung, pancreas or intestine.
4. More than a
million tissue transplants are performed every year and the need is rising.
5. As of June
2013, over 112 million people (46%) of the US adult population are registered
as organ donors.
6. Every major religion in the United States supports
organ donations as the highest expression of generosity and compassion.
7. There is no
cost to the donor’s family or estate for organ donations.
Recent statistics from the USA TODAY show that Arizona is ranked the third lowest organ donor
state in the nation at 17.2%. The top
organ donors’ states are: Colorado – 64.4%, Iowa – 62.8%, Montana 62.4%,
Washington – 56.7%, and Wyoming – 55.4%. The worst organ donors’ states
are: New York – 11.1%, Michigan – 12.7%,
Arizona – 17.2%, California – 25.5%, and Kentucky – 25.9%. It is difficult to get an organ transplant in Arizona because the
supply of organs are so low.
Last year we attended the DONATE LIFE EVENT at the Arizona
State Capitol. We had the honor to meet the “THANKSGIVING MOM” and listened to her story of love. Her only
daughter had died in an automobile accident and her organs were used to save
the lives of six people. Those six transplant recipients celebrate Thanksgiving
with her every year honoring her daughter for giving them the “Gift of Life.” The Thanksgiving mom
stated that she knows her daughter is in Heaven but she is so blessed because
she feels her presence every Thanksgiving when the people her daughter saved
celebrate the holiday together.
Organ donation is a subject near and dear to our hearts
since Carol received her transplanted liver in October, 2007 at Banner Good Samaritan Hospital. Carol
is very active mentoring organ donors and raising awareness and funds for this worthwhile
cause. We urge all Arizonans’ to mark
the Organ Donor box on their Driver’s License and share life.
Submitted on
04/18/14 by:
Mark and Carol Fairall
Founders of THE REAL FACES OF ELDER ABUSE
Mark and Carol live in Sun City West. They are
active in the community by volunteer teaching classes in the West Valley about
Arizona Travel and Elder Abuse Prevention. The Fairalls also write columns and
newspaper articles about elder abuse information and prevention.
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