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Mayor Ardell Brede to Proclaim April 11 ‘Donate Life Day’ in Rochester
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Wear blue and green, attend flag raising ceremony to commemorate
ROCHESTER, Minn. — Rochester Mayor Ardell Brede will proclaim Friday, April 11, “Donate Life Day” in Rochester at a ceremony at the Gift of Life Transplant House (north house) starting at 4 p.m. that day. A 3-by-5-foot Donate Life flag will be raised as part of the ceremony to increase awareness and honor organ donors. The event is open to the public. The Gift of Life Transplant House is located at 705 Second Street SW.
More than 120,000 people are waiting for an organ transplant in the United States. Nearly 2,000 of those are children. Mayo Clinic has over 3,000 patients on the waiting list for an organ transplant. Every 10 minutes another name is added to the national waiting list. An average of 18 people die each day in the United States waiting for transplants that can't take place because of the shortage of donated organs.
April is National Donate Life Month, and events are happening across the country to increase support for organ, tissue and eye donation. In addition to the Donate Life Day event in Rochester, there are several other ways to participate or observe Donate Life Month:
- “Wear Blue & Green Day,” Friday, April 11, and tell your friends and family about your wishes to be an organ donor.
- Take a photo of your green “Donate Life” bracelet and post it to the "Transplantation at Mayo Clinic” Facebook page. Use hashtag #donatelife if you post on your own Facebook or Twitter.
- The Plummer Building carillon tower will be lit with green lights the evening of April 11.
- Visit the LifeSource Donor Quilt exhibit, April 14–18, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Hage Atrium, Mayo Clinic downtown campus, Rochester.
- Watch “A Gift for Life,” the one-hour transplant documentary by Dennis Mahoney and TPT Productions on Monday, April 14, and Thursday, April 17, from noon to 1 p.m., Judd Hall, Mayo Clinic downtown campus.
For more information on how to register as a donor, visit http://www.donatelifemidwest.org/mn/.
About Donate Life Month
National Donate Life Month (NDLM) was instituted by Donate Life America and its partnering organizations in 2003. Celebrated in April each year, NDLM features an entire month of local, regional and national activities to help encourage Americans to register as organ, tissue and eye donors and to celebrate those who have saved lives through the gift of donation.
About the Gift of Life Transplant House
Now celebrating 30 years of service, Gift of Life Transplant House was founded in 1984 by kidney transplant patient Ed Pompeian. His vision and mission was to provide Mayo Clinic transplant patients with high-quality affordable accommodations in a supportive homelike environment.
Gift of Life provides services for solid organ, bone marrow and stem cell transplant patients and their families. It is a place of compassion, healing and hope for patients of all ages from all over the world. In this supportive environment, the Gift of Life Transplant House helps ease the impact of the complex medical, financial, emotional and spiritual burdens families are faced with day to day on their transplant journey.
Gift of Life Transplant House in Rochester, Minnesota is a not-for-profit independent Hospital Hospitality House and a member of the Healthcare Hospitality Network (HHN).
About Transplantation at Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic has one of the nation’s largest and most experienced transplant practices, with campuses in Minnesota, Arizona and Florida. Over 200 doctors in transplant medicine and surgery perform about 1,800 transplants a year, and have a long track record of excellent outcomes. The heart transplant program at Mayo Clinic in Rochester is part of the integrated William J. von Liebig Transplant Center, where more than 800 solid organ and blood and marrow transplants take place every year. The opportunity to collaborate with multiple transplant programs allows Mayo Clinic patients access to a multidisciplinary transplant team and the opportunity for multiorgan transplantation if necessary.
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About Mayo Clinic
Recognizing 150 years of serving humanity in 2014, Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit worldwide leader in medical care, research and education for people from all walks of life. For more information, visit 150years.mayoclinic.org, www.mayoclinic.org and newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Rita Hawkins, Gift of Life Transplant House, rita@gift-of-life.org
Ginger Plumbo, Mayo Clinic Public Affairs, 507-284-5005, Email: newsbureau@mayo.edu
