ORGAN DONATION
April is Be A Donor Month
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or many people living with kidney disease, a transplant offers the best chance at a healthier life. Organ donation saves lives and restores health. A kidney transplant is not a cure, but it offers the best possible improvement to health and quality of life for many people living with kidney failure. More than 4,000 Canadians are on the waiting list for a transplant. Of those, 78 percent are waiting for a kidney. Green Shirt Day – April 7, 2020 We are pleased to announce that we’ve joined the Canadian Transplant Association as a community partner in the Green Shirt Day initiative. The annual awareness day is a wonderful opportunity for The Kidney Foundation and the kidney community to inspire Canadians to become organ donors. Green Shirt Day honours the legacy of Logan Boulet, a 21-year-old Humboldt Broncos hockey player who died following a tragic bus crash that took the lives of 16 people on April 6, 2018. Logan’s parents, Bernadine (Bernie) and Toby Boulet, honoured Logan’s wish to be a donor, saving the lives of six Canadians. Just prior to the accident, Logan told his parents he wanted to register as an organ donor when he turned 21, inspired by his coach Ric Suggitt, who became an organ donor after passing away suddenly in 2017. Logan, giving the gift of life, inspired more than 100,000 Canadians to register their intent to donate their organs in a national groundswell of support now widely known as “The Logan Boulet Effect.” Let’s inspire one another by registering as donors and have the kitchen table talk with our family about organ donation. Register at beadonor.ca/ kidneyfoundationofcanada. Here are a few ways you can get involved: • Organize an Organ and Tissue Donor registration drive at your workplace. • Host or join a Green Shirt Day event in your region. • Get your green on and gather with friends, family or co-workers. • Share your support on social media and use #GreenShirtDay #LoganBouletEffect • Talk to your family about organ and tissue donation • Have the Kitchen Table Talk. Challenge your friends to do the same. #KitchenTableTalk • Light up Green (Your front door light, string Christmas lights, etc.) #LightUpGreen • Inspire others to register or confirm that they are registered at beadonor.ca • Order an Official Green Shirt Day shirt at greenshirtday.shop kidney.ca
Spring 2020 / Kidney Living / 17
