APRIL IS NATIONAL DONATE LIFE MONTH, so there is no better time to spread the word about the importance of saying “yes” to saving lives through organ donation!
In celebration of the annual observance, Life Connection of Ohio, a non-profit organization that serves families and saves lives through organ donation, is partnering with WTOL 11 for the 15th annual Donate Life Sit-in. During this 24-hour event, transplant recipients, donor family members, and supporters will take a seat to take a stand on the importance of organ donation in Life Connection of Ohio’s Green Chair.
The Green Chair’s meaning is twofold. When it is empty, the Green Chair represents overwhelming sadness from the loss of someone who died waiting for a transplant. But when someone is sitting in the Green Chair, it showcases a transplant recipient’s second chance at life. The tagline of the Green Chair campaign is “Don’t let another chair go empty” because encouraging more people to register as organ donors means there will be fewer empty chairs.
The Donate Life Sit-in will make that tagline a reality. There are more than 100,000 people on the national transplant waiting list, including more than 2,500 Ohioans. Another name is added to the waiting list every 8 minutes. Sadly, 16 people die every day waiting for an organ transplant. The good news is that one person has the power to save up to eight lives through organ donation.
Two of the many stories shared from the Green Chair will be told by Tammy Sprow and Jocelyn Harpel.
Tammy’s husband, Cory, made his mark in the Pike-Delta-York school system. He was a science and health teacher, and he coached football, baseball, golf, and basketball. He eventually became principal at the elementary school. Cory had an unforgettable smile and sense of humor, and he was a loved husband, father, uncle, brother, and son.
Sadly, on January 3, 2013, Cory passed away. In one final lesson in generosity, he saved three lives through organ donation and healed many others through tissue donation. Tammy was not surprised that Cory was a registered organ, eye, and tissue donor—he had a huge heart and would help anyone with anything. Cory is missed every day by his family, but they find comfort knowing that Cory lives on in those whose lives he saved through donation.
“Organ donation has been such a great way of turning the worst day of our lives into something positive. Not everybody gets to tell their kids that their dad’s a hero—a literal, certified, actual hero. He saved three people’s lives, and I get to say that to my girls, so I take that as a blessing. Had he not been a donor, I wouldn’t get to say that. It’s such a perfect continuation of the way that Cory lived his life,” Tammy said.
Donor heroes like Cory make life possible for grateful transplant recipients like Jocelyn.
Rewind almost four decades. Jocelyn was working full time as a cardiac nurse and being a mom to two-year-old Mandy. Seemingly out of nowhere, Jocelyn suffered a heart attack. While in the hospital, she was in an immense amount of pain, and her health took a nosedive. Jocelyn went into cardiac arrest and ventricular tachycardia. Her heart was not functioning, and her lungs were filling up with fluid. Jocelyn was connected to a ventilator, and her only hope for survival was a heart transplant.
On July 30, Josh will celebrate her 35-year heart transplant anniversary! Those extra years have given Jocelyn the opportunity to watch Mandy grow up. Jocelyn is grateful for every milestone she has been able to witness Mandy achieve, including graduating from high school, graduating from nursing school, getting married in Hawaii, helping others as a nurse practitioner, and becoming a mother.
Registering as an organ donor costs nothing and means everything. There are three ways to join the Ohio Donor Registry:
• Online at lifeconnection.org: All you need to say “yes” to saving lives is a valid Ohio driver’s license or state identification card.
• At the BMV: Say “yes” when obtaining or renewing your driver’s license, state identification card, or vehicle registration.
• By mail: Say “yes” through an Ohio Donor Registry enrollment form, which can be found at any BMV or Life Connection of Ohio’s offices.
Life Connection of Ohio is the nonprofit organization that serves families and saves lives through organ donation in northwest and west central Ohio. To learn more about organ donation or to say “yes” to saving lives, visit lifeconnection.org. Kara Steele is Director of Community Services for Life Connection of Ohio. ✲
