UToledo Health Will Kick Off Donate Life Month with a Flag Raising Ceremony

UToledo Health Will Kick Off Donate Life Month with a Flag Raising Ceremony

UToledo Health, in partnership with Life Connection of Ohio and Solvita, will recognize National Donate Life Month with a flag-raising ceremony outside of University of Toledo Medical Center on Thursday, April 2.
The event will begin at 11 a.m. on the first floor of the Mulford Library on UToledo's Health Science Campus, immediately followed by the flag-raising ceremony outside. The event is open to the public.

Every April, National Donate Life Month raises awareness of the vital need for organ, eye and tissue donations while honoring those who saved lives through organ donation.

Raising the flag this year is Kandy Takas from Millbury, Ohio. Kandy received a lifesaving kidney transplant in 2000 at UTMC.

"I'm so thankful for the gift of life," Takas said. "It allowed me to go back and be a mom and be here to watch my son grow up."

National Donate Life Month helps raise awareness about donation and encourages Americans to register as organ, eye and tissue donors.

"Becoming a registered donor is a way to save up to eight lives with organ donation," said Kristin Calkins, director of trauma services at the University of Toledo Medical Center. "Having a robust donor base decreases the wait time for those seeking organ donation. There are over 100,000 people on a waiting list that continues to grow."

According to Life Connection of Ohio, one registered organ donor could save up to eight lives and heal up to 125 more through tissue donation. More than 40,000 lives are saved through organ donation every year, and more than 2 million people benefit from tissue transplants annually.

For more information on organ, eye and tissue donation or to register as a donor, visit Life Connection of Ohio's website.