Show Some Love for Organ and Tissue Donation

Supporters of organ and tissue donation are some of the most passionate and energetic advocates around. This Valentine’s Day, let’s focus that passion and energy on “showing some love for organ and tissue donation.” How can we show our love for donation? It’s simple . . . just follow these steps:

1. If you haven’t done so already, take 30 seconds to register your decision to save lives through organ/tissue donation at DonateLifeIllinois.org.
2. Let others know that you’re a registered donor! Tweet and post about why you support organ/tissue donation. Not a social media fan? No problem! Tell ten co-workers, friends, or family members about why you support organ/tissue donation and why they should register at DonateLifeIllinois.org.
3. Become a Donate Life Illinois volunteer. Learn more about the Donate Life Illinois Volunteer Program at DonateLifeIllinois.org!
4. Advocate for organ/tissue donation in the community and in your workplace. Encourage your employer to participate in the Donate Life Illinois Workplace Partners Campaign. Or, if you’re still in school, organize a Campus Campaign that will encourage your fellow students to register as organ/tissue donors!

Thanks for all of your love! Let us know how you “showed your love for donation” by posting on the Donate Life Illinois Facebook Page or tweet at us @DonateLifeIL!

Illinois Partners with Donate Life America to Register 20 Million in 2012

We need your help to register 20 million Americans as organ and tissue donors in 2012!

Jessica Melore celebrated her 30^th birthday on January 4, a milestone she wasn’t sure she’d live to experience. At 16, Jessica received a lifesaving heart transplant. Her story of hope and survival helps to launch Donate Life America’s bold new initiative: “20 Million in 2012.”

Donate Life America — the national organization promoting organ, eye and tissue donation in the United States – designed its “20 Million in 2012” initiative to focus on dramatically increasing the number of people registered in state donor registries. This official launch of the campaign comes on the heels of DLA’s announcement during the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena  where it has sponsored the Donate Life float each year since 2004. This year’s float again featured inspirational stories of organ donors and their families, a tradition that the “20 Million in 2012” campaign will continue as it features powerful stories of people affected by organ, eye and tissue donation.

“I am so proud to be a part of the campaign’s “I am HOPE” storytelling project,” says Melore. “Real-life stories like mine often inspire people to sign up to be organ, eye and tissue donors.”

By registering your decision to be an organ and tissue donor, you can give hope to more than 112,000 Americans—more than 5,000 Illinoisans—waiting for lifesaving transplants. “We are committed to saving and enhancing as many lives as possible through organ and tissue donation,” says David Bosch, Director of Communications for Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network, which coordinates organ and tissue donation in Illinois and northwest Indiana. “Nearly 6 million Illinois residents have registered their decisions to save and enhance lives through organ and tissue donation. In 2012, we hope to inspire and motivate thousands more to make this ordinary decision that can produce extraordinary results.”

Gift of Hope and other Donate Life Illinois coalition members will support the “20 Million in 2012” campaign’s four featured national events:

• The Donate Life Flash Mob on March 24
• Donate Life Blue and Green Virtual Fashion Show on April 20
• Donate Life Champions in Fall 2012
• Donate Life Linking Hands for Life being held all year long

For more information about the “20 Million in 2012” campaign, visit DonateLifeAmerica.org. To register your decision to be an organ and tissue donor in Illinois, visit DonateLifeIllinois.org.

An Invitation to Save Lives

Photo by D Sharon Pruitt

Next week, our friends at Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network will start a new project to reach potential organ and tissue donors. They are “inviting” residents in Edgar, Greene and Brown counties to join the Illinois Organ/Tissue Donor Registry and help save lives through organ and tissue donation.

Over the next few weeks, residents of these counties will receive one of two direct mail pieces asking them to save lives by taking just 30 seconds to register as donors. One is designed to look like a party invitation and features Luke, a huggable young boy waiting for a liver transplant. The other looks like a thank-you card and features Drew, a cute little guy who’s now living an active life thanks to the heart transplant he received.

Gift of Hope chose Edgar, Greene and Brown counties for the direct mail campaign because of their manageable sizes and relatively low registration rates. For example, only of 47 percent of Edgar County residents have registered as donors compared with the statewide average of nearly 58 percent. We hope this direct mail campaign will help build awareness and register organ and tissue donors in each of these counties.

Here’s a look at the direct mail pieces being used for the campaign. Let us know what you think of them by leaving a message on our Facebook page. And if you’d like to see how your county’s donor registration rate compares with the statewide average, visit the interactive map posted on DonateLifeIllinois.org.

Register your decision to save lives through organ and tissue donation at DonateLifeIllinois.org!

Enter to Win Brad Paisley Tickets

Brad Paisley's latest album "This is Country Music"

Calling all Brad Paisley fans! We have FOUR pairs of tickets to see Brad Paisley live on Wednesday, September 21st at Joe’s Bar in Chicago. And we are giving them away to our amazing Donate Life Illinois fans and followers.

Winning a pair of tickets is easy! All that you need to do is post the following phrase as your Facebook status:

I am a registered organ donor. Are you? More than 110,000 Americans are waiting for lifesaving organ transplants. Register in 30 seconds at www.DonateLifeIllinois.org!

Once you post this status, visit the Donate Life Illinois Facebook Page and leave a message on our wall notifying us that you’re awesome and updated your status with the above phrase.

Four winners (each receiving two tickets) will be selected at 12pm CDT on Tuesday, September 20th. Entrants must post a message on the Donate Life Illinois Facebook Page stating that they updated their status. Winners will be posted on the Donate Life Illinois Facebook Page and contacted by a Donate Life Illinois representative to coordinate ticket pick up.

Not a registered organ and tissue donor? Visit DonateLifeIllinois.org to register and save lives!