OneLegacy Celebrates Gift of Life Month through Outreach and Awareness Activities Promoting the Power of Organ, Eye and Tissue Donation

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–OneLegacy, the local organ procurement organization serving seven Southern California counties, joins thousands of organizations, hospitals, transplant centers and cities across the country in celebrating National Gift of Life Month in April with the aim of encouraging more people to register as organ, eye and tissue donors.

Nationwide, more than 100,000 people are waiting for life-saving heart, liver, lung, kidney or pancreas transplants. In California alone, nearly 20,000 people are on the waiting list, but there simply aren’t enough donors to meet the need, as less than 1% of all deaths are eligible for donation. A single organ donor can save the lives of up to eight people and improve the lives of 75 others by donating their corneas and tissues.

National Gift of Life Month recognizes the generosity of those who have saved and healed lives by becoming donors while highlighting the critical need for more people to say “yes” to donation. In support of these goals, throughout the month, OneLegacy will lead a number of community outreach, education and outreach activities, including:

• Flags across America: OneLegacy joins organizations across the country to rally every donor hospital and transplant center, and every recovery agency, to raise the Donate Life flag during the month of April. The “Flags Across America” ​​initiative began in 2009 to commemorate the cause and honor those who gave the gift of life through donation.
• Blue and Green Spirit Week/Day: From April 16-22, OneLegacy will celebrate Blue and Green Spirit Week with a series of activities in Southern California. On April 22, hospitals and transplant centers will join OneLegacy in encouraging all employees to wear blue and green, the official colors of Donate Life, to draw attention to the power of organ donation. and the need for others to register to become donors. OneLegacy encourages local businesses and all members of the community to show their support by wearing blue and green on this day.
• DMV Partnership: OneLegacy has a long and successful partnership with the DMV to facilitate the registration of individuals as donors. This has included a OneLegacy presence at numerous DMV sites in Southern California, with a focus on sites with the lowest donor registration rates. As part of National Gift of Life Month, OneLegacy is partnering with Pastor William D. Smart, President and CEO of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Southern California, to tour local DMV offices and inspire guests from the DMV to say “YES” to organs, eyes and tissues. Don.
• Donor registration drive at UCLA and local schools: From April 1-30, UCLA is partnering with UC Berkley in Northern California for a friendly competition to share the importance of organ, eye and tissue donation with local students and register more donors in the Donate Life California registry.
• City proclamations: During the month of April, OneLegacy reaches out to hundreds of city and county elected officials to encourage them to issue proclamations for the month of the gift of life. More than 200 OneLegacy Ambassadors volunteer their time in April to adopt their local cities, share their giving stories, and receive these special city and county proclamations.
• Donate Life Run/Walk: Throughout April, OneLegacy will be encouraging people to sign up for the 20^and Annual Donate Life Run/Walk, to be held June 4 at Azusa Pacific University. After two years of virtual gatherings due to the pandemic, this event celebrating the power of donation and transplantation will once again become an in-person affair with over 12,000 people expected. You can register on www.donateliferunwalk.org.

“Giving is about honoring and fulfilling a life cut short and celebrating the lives that each donor saves and heals – a legacy of life for grateful recipients,” said Tom Mone, CEO of OneLegacy. “We are fortunate to partner with so many hospitals, transplant centers, community partners and civic leaders to engage, inform and inspire people in our many communities to register as donors during National Month. of the gift of life and in doing so help to save and heal lives.”

The ability to donate and receive a life-saving transplant knows no national, racial, ethnic or religious boundaries or sexual orientation; it simply helps those who need it most. Becoming an eye, organ or tissue donor is easy and can be done by registering online at donateLIFEcalifornia.org/OneLegacy or by checking “YES” at your local DMV.

About OneLegacy

OneLegacy is the nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives through organ, eye and tissue donation in seven Southern California counties: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara and Kern. It serves more than 200 hospitals, 10 transplant centers, a diverse population of 20 million donors and families across the region, and pending recipients nationwide. For more information, visit OneLegacy.org.