Since 2006, Donate Life Illinois has provided social media users with organ and tissue donation news, expert insight and engaging digital content. In that time, we built a community of more than 18,000 Facebook fans, created a Twitter presence of nearly 1,450 followers and developed dozens of YouTube videos with over 250,000 views.
Today, the Donate Life Illinois social media channels transitioned to the Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network brand. The newly branded sites for our respective social media channels are:
The look and names of these social media sites might be different, but the news, content and promotions will remain the same. Gift of Hope, in partnership with Donate Life Illinois, remains committed to creating a community of registered donors who are dedicated to building organ and tissue donation awareness across the country.
Keep an eye out for new features, promotions and news regarding Gift of Hope and our social media sites! To learn more about Gift of Hope, visit GiftofHope.org!
– Josh Muller, Public Relations/Marketing Coordinator, Gift of Hope
Donate Life Illinois urges faith leaders throughout Illinois to raise their collective voices, praise the benefits of organ and tissue donation and urge their members to give the gift of life by being organ and tissue donors during National Donor Sabbath, which will be observed November 11-13.
Donation and transplantation professionals designate this special weekend each year—two weekends before the Thanksgiving season—to bring donation to the attention of faith leaders and their communities. During this time, Donate Life Illinois coalition members seek to educate faith communities about the ongoing need for organ, tissue and eye donors and to encourage people to register as donors.
Religious views on donation vary among denominations, but the vast majority—including all major religions such as Catholicism, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism—view organ and tissue donation as one of the highest forms of giving and a supreme gesture of human compassion. That’s because faith and hope—fundamental principles of nearly all religions—also are integral components of the donation and transplant process. From those who wait for organ and tissue transplants, to donors who one day hope to make a lifesaving difference, to donor families who can ease the pain of losing a loved one by knowing he or she gave life to others—all have faith in a greater good beyond themselves.
Donate Life Illinois encourages all Illinoisans to be a part of this special time of hope and thanksgiving by planning and participating in National Donor Sabbath activities and registering to be organ, tissue and eye donors in the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor Registry. This selfless act can give hope to nearly 5,000 Illinoisans on the organ transplant waiting list and thousands of others waiting for tissue and cornea transplants.
For more information on organ and tissue donation or to join the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor Registry, visit DonateLifeIllinois.org. For information on how to plan a National Donor Sabbath program for your faith community members, e-mail Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network at info@giftofhope.org or call 888/307-DON8 (3668).
Throughout the month of February, health organizations across the country celebrate American Heart Month. This month, Donate Life Illinois is encouraging our friends to take two steps. First, we are asking you to learn more about heart health and heart transplants. Second, we want you to “Show Your Heart for Donation” by letting others know about the overwhelming need for organ and tissue donors in Illinois.
Heart Transplant Facts:
In 1967, Dr. Adrian Kantrowitz advanced medical science by performing the first heart transplant at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York.
Last year, 2,135 heart transplants were performed across the country.
Heart transplants are extremely successful as seen with recent increases in the five-year survival rates for recipients (73.1 percent for males and 67.4 percent for females).
In the United States, 3,186 people (131 in Illinois) are desperately waiting for a lifesaving heart transplant.
Potential heart recipients suffer from a variety of heart-related diseases ranging from cardiomyopathy (the weakening of the heart) to a myriad of congenital heart problems (diseases which patients are born with).
How can you can you “Show Your Heart for Donation”? Take 30 seconds to register your decision to be an organ and tissue donor at DonateLifeIllinois.org. If you are already registered, encourage others to make the decision to save lives through organ and tissue donation. Be sure to use your social networks when telling others. Create a Facebook post linking to the Donate Life Illinois Fan Page or tell others to learn more about donation by following DonateLifeIL on Twitter.
Want to learn more about heart health and heart transplants? Check out the following websites:
The news that Arizona will stop financing certain transplant operations under the state’s version of Medicaid has drawn significant criticism. The public continues to voice its outrage. Legislators have made it political. And doctors say the decision amounts to a death sentence for some patients who have little chance of survival without transplants and who lack the hundreds of thousands of dollars needed to pay for them.
In a vacuum, these arguments hold great merit. And be very clear: We, likewise, sincerely believe that the decision to stop paying for lifesaving organ transplants is both misguided and tragic.
At the same time: Even if the state’s decision is reversed—and hopefully it will be—many people will still die waiting for transplants because there simply are not enough organs available.
It strikes me as sadly ironic that people – many of whom either refuse to register to be a donor or simply haven’t taken the time to register their decision to save lives – are so passionate about the issue before us.
We are not powerless. We should fight the law. More importantly we should fight for the 110,000 people across the country who are waiting for lifesaving organ transplants—and do our part to give them hope for a better outcome by increasing donor registrations.
So re-direct the passion. Make the decision and take 30 seconds to register to be an organ, eye and tissue donor at DonateLifeIllinois.org.
The power to save lives is very much in our hands.
–David Bosch, Communications Director, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network
Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network is a not-for-profit organ procurement organization entrusted with coordinating organ and tissue donation and providing donor family services and public education in Illinois and northwest Indiana. .
This blog focuses on outreach initiatives, expert insight and commentary pertaining to the organ/tissue donation community.
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Illinois and northwest Indiana residents can REGISTER HERE.
From Another State?
Click Here to learn how to register in your state.
Since 2006, Donate Life Illinois has provided social media users with organ and tissue donation news, expert insight and engaging digital content. In that time, we built a community of more than 18,000 Facebook fans, created a Twitter presence of nearly 1,450 followers and developed dozens of YouTube videos with over 250,000 views.
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Gift of Hope Blog 
