This week (April 22-28) is National Organ & Tissue Donation Awareness Week (N.O.T.D.A.W), a part of Be a Donor month.

In Ontario alone, over 1,500 people are on the transplant list..with 1 person every 3 days passing away.

My dad was one of those people. In March of 2006, while waiting to receive a new heart, my dad passed away due to complications. However, his story doesn’t end there. Instead of being a recipient, my dad would end up becoming a donor, giving his lungs, pancreas, kidneys, liver and eyes to others on the wait-list. Complete strangers are getting a second chance at life because of my dad’s (and my mom being the incredibly brave soul to sign off on this and ask about it) decision to be an organ donor.

He didn’t rescue anyone from a burning building, he didn’t jump out of airplanes or fly to the moon…no, my dad SAVED someone’s life, simply by telling his family he wanted to be a donor if the time ever came. He is a hero, not just to my family, but to friends and families of those who received the gift of life.

I miss my dad, and I always will. He was the first man I ever loved in life and I will always be a Daddy’s Girl. So today, I ask you as a daughter, a sister, a friend, a colleague, a person, to consider organ and tissue donation and talk to your family about your wishes. It’s not an easy conversation to have, no one likes to talk about death, but it’s an important one and could save someone’s life, or give them the second chance they need.

Get the facts about organ donation HERE and sign up to be a donor HERE. 

 

Filed under: BeADonor.ca, NOTDAW, organ-donation