Donate Life Month Honors Organ and Tissue Donors, Recipients

Finger Lakes Donor Recovery Network is pleased to join hospitals and transplant centers in the Finger Lakes, Central and Northern New York regions as they celebrate Donate Life Month in April. Together they are honoring and celebrating the hundreds of thousands of donors and recipients whose lives have been touched by organ and tissue donation across the country.

Locally, more than 900 patients are waiting for a kidney, heart, liver or pancreas transplant. Hundreds of others in our area will be helped this year by tissue transplants such as cornea, bone, tendon, ligaments and heart valves.

“We salute the donors who have given the Gift of Life to help others in desperate need, and their families who supported their wish to be a donor or made the decision on their behalf,” said Rob Kochik, executive director of Finger Lakes Donor Recovery Network (FLDRN). “April is a time to remember the selfless gifts and their impact, and to raise awareness about the importance of organ and tissue donation. We encourage everyone to make this very personal commitment to become a donor and to tell their family of their wishes.”

Each hospital, transplant center and tissue recovery agency in FLDRN’s donation service area is encouraged to fly a Donate Life flag in honor of those have donated and to promote enrollment in the New York State Donate Life Registry. More than 20 area hospitals are planning flag raisings and other events to raise awareness, including: 

• St. Josephs Hospital Health Center will hold its annual event at 11:30 a.m. April 2;
• Arnot Ogden Medical Center will focus on transplantation at their nursing grand rounds at noon on April 2.
• Oswego Hospital will host a donor awareness table from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 12;
• Rochester General Hospital will hold a Celebration of Life Event with a butterfly release at 10:30 a.m. April 19;
• Strong Memorial Hospital has scheduled a Celebration of Life Event  for the week of April 23;
• SUNY Upstate Medical University will hold a noon ceremony April 25, followed by a silent auction and a dessert tasting event;
• SUNY Upstate at Community General will be hosting a table display on April 26;
• SUNY Upstate, Crouse Hospital, St. Joseph’s and the Syracuse VA Medical Center are collaborating on a joint donor registry campaign for the month of April.

This Donate Life Month, members of our community are encouraged to designate their decision to become a donor by enrolling in the New York State Donate Life Registry at www.donorrecovery.org.

The community also can show support on April 20 by wearing blue and green, the colors that signify organ donation and transplantation.

Finger Lakes Donor Recovery Network is affiliated with the University of Rochester Medical Center, coordinating organ donation in 20 counties with a population of 2.4 million and serving two transplant centers and 38 hospitals in the Finger Lakes Region, Central and Northern New York.