Versiti was the first of dozens of hospitals, businesses and community organizations to kick off National Donate Life Month by participating in a statewide Donate Life flag-raising ceremony and moment of silence on Friday, April 1 at 1:08 p.m. This event honored organ, tissue and eye donors and their families and promoted awareness of organ, tissue and eye donation and the need for more registered donors.
Donate Life Wisconsin launched the inaugural Pause to Give Life event in 2018 as a statewide observance to occur annually on the first Monday of April, marking the start of National Donate Life Month. Versiti will support hospital and community partners throughout southeastern Wisconsin in their own synchronized Pause to Give Life events taking place Monday, April 4 at 1:08pm.
One organ donor can save up to eight lives. This event honored the gifts of life that donors and their families have made possible and recognized the more than 106,000 patients currently waiting for a lifesaving transplant, nearly 1,600 right here in Wisconsin.
The Donate Life flag was first introduced in 2006. Since then, it has become a national symbol of unity, remembrance and hope, while honoring those touched by donation and transplantation. During the past 16 years, more than 60,000 Donate Life Flags have flown across America.
Wisconsin Organ, Tissue and Eye Donation Facts:
• Anyone age 15or older can register as a donor in Wisconsin, regardless of age, health, gender, ethnicity, or racial background.
• Three million Wisconsin residents, almost 60 percent of those eligible, have said “Yes” to organ, tissue and eye donation by registering as organ, tissue and eye donors on Wisconsin’s Donor Registry.
• All major religions in the United States support donation and view it as a final act of love and generosity.
In 2021, Versiti Organ and Tissue facilitated 324 organ transplants from 108 donors and supported 566 Wisconsin families who gave the gift of tissue donation.
Save and heal lives. Register as an organ, tissue and eye donor by visiting versiti.org/sharinglife.
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About Versiti Blood Center of Wisconsin
Versiti Blood Center of Wisconsin is a not-for-profit organization headquartered in Milwaukee that specializes in blood services, esoteric diagnostic testing, organ, tissue and stem cell donation, medical services and leading-edge research. We advance patient care by delivering lifesaving products and services. For more information, visit versiti.org/WI.
About Donate Life Wisconsin
Donate Life Wisconsin (DLW) is a nonprofit alliance of organizations and caring individuals dedicated to increasing donated organs, eyes and tissues to save and heal lives. Through education and advocacy, DLW inspires people to register as donors and works together to create a culture where donation is embraced as a fundamental human responsibility.