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This April, Donate More Than Clothes at Goodwill of Orange County Stores — Donate Life

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

For additional information contact:
Nicole Morrison (Goodwill of OC) 562-773-9910
Lacey Wood (Donate Life CA) 916-678-6006
Ingrid Smart (Casanova) 949-300-296

This April, Donate More Than Clothes at Goodwill of Orange County Stores — Donate Life

Donate Life CA and Goodwill of OC Team Up for Innovative Donor Registration Initiative

Santa Ana, CA (April 2, 2021): This April for National Organ Donation Month, you can donate more than clothes and gently used items at Goodwill of Orange County stores – you can donate life. Through an innovative partnership between Donate Life CA and Goodwill of Orange County, all Goodwill shoppers and donors will be given the opportunity to register as organ, eye and tissue donors.

Historically, most people register at the DMV when they get or renew their driver’s license, but this month, they will also be able to easily register as an organ donor when they drop off donations or shop at any Goodwill store in Orange County.

Each day, 20 people in the U.S. die waiting for an organ donation, and there are more than 100,000 people currently waiting for a lifesaving transplant. More than 22,000 people, or 20% of the national waiting list, are right here in California. The program, created by local ad agency Casanova//McCann, aims to significantly increase the number of registered organ donors here in O.C.

“We are excited to be part of this initiative and to use our store and donation sites to change lives in a different way this month,” said Nicole Suydam, President and CEO of Goodwill of Orange County. “On average, we see 90,000 donors in April, so we have a unique opportunity to significantly impact the lives of so many in need.”

“California still lags behind the national average of organ donors and our goal is to close that gap,” Jim Martin, CEO, Donate Life CA said.” We are grateful to partner with Goodwill of Orange County, a respected organization that has given us access to a whole new way to register donors.”

“This is our second initiative for Donate Life CA and our first with Goodwill of Orange County, and we couldn’t be more excited about it,” said Ingrid Otero-Smart, President and CEO, Casanova//McCann. “Last time we increased registrations by 19% and it is our goal to beat that number with this initiative”.

About Goodwill of Orange County
Goodwill of Orange County helps people facing barriers find and keep jobs, which provides purpose, pride, and dignity. Since its inception in 1924, Goodwill has supported hundreds of thousands of individuals through quality training and education programs, supportive employment services for people with developmental and physical disabilities, on-site job coaching, community integration programs, veteran employment services, and more. The nonprofit operates a collection of 25 retail venues throughout Orange County, including five OC Goodwill Boutiques and its ecommerce platform shopgoodwill.com, to support these life-changing programs and services. To learn more about Goodwill of Orange County, visit ocgoodwill.org.

About Donate Life California:

The Donate Life California Organ & Tissue Donor Registry is the nonprofit, state-authorized organ, eye and tissue donor registry. As a public service, the registry assures that all personal information is kept confidential and stored in a secure database, accessible only to authorized organ and tissue recovery personnel at the time of an actual donation opportunity. The registry is administered by Donate Life California and California’s four nonprofit, federally designated organ recovery organizations: Donor Network West, Lifesharing, OneLegacy and Sierra Donor Services. For more information about Donate Life California; how organ, eye and tissue donation saves and improves lives; and to sign up, please visit www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org or in Spanish at www.doneVIDAcalifornia.org.

About Casanova//McCann:

Casanova//McCann is one of the leading Hispanic integrated communications agencies in the U.S. and the most awarded Hispanic agency in Cannes the past two years. Founded in 1984, the company is headquartered in Costa Mesa, CA, with N.Y. and Detroit offices. It handles Hispanic advertising and integrated communications services for Fortune 500 clients like Nestlé, Chevrolet, US Postal Service, Cigna, and Coca-Cola, among others. Casanova has been affiliated with Interpublic Group of Companies since 1999 and became a minority, female-owned, in October 2020. For more information about Casanova//McCann, visit www.Casanova.com.

Navy Veteran to be Honored as a Tissue and Cornea Donor Hero in the Donate Life Rose Parade® Experience During the 2021 Tournament of Roses Entertainment Special

SACRAMENTO, Calif., October 22, 2020 – Francis “Frank” Cox, a devoted family man who dedicated his life to community service, was selected by Donate Life California as the 2021 Donate Life Rose Parade® Experience floragraph honoree. On October 29th, 2020, Frank’s family will put the finishing touches on a floral portrait of his likeness, known as a floragraph, during a special unveiling ceremony with Donate Life California at the Sacramento headquarters of the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) at 10:00 am. While the 2021 Rose Parade® was cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Frank will be featured during the Tournament of Roses’ Entertainment Special, airing nationally the morning of January 1st, 2021.

Frank, a Navy veteran, enjoyed camping, spending time in his motorhome, and tailgating at the ski resorts every weekend as his family enjoyed the snow. He was also happy to barbeque just about anything at his family’s frequent pool parties. His love of family was very apparent and his passion for over 20 years was volunteering at Shriner’s Hospitals for Children. Frank was the 29th person to join the El Kalah Shrine Clown Unit where he was lovingly known as “Potsy,” and performed for the children and their families. Frank became a tissue and cornea donor in the winter of 1988 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

“My father was a devoted family man who instilled in us the value of community service and helping out those in need,” said Delia Bolinder, Frank’s daughter and a DMV employee. “When he was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, he was worried that he would no longer be eligible to be a donor. Thankfully, he was still able to give the gift of sight and tissue to several recipients in need. I know my father would be so honored to be featured in the Donate Life Rose Parade Experience this year.”

The DMV and Donate Life California became state-authorized partners in 2006. Since then, more than 16.5 million Californians have signed up to save lives by registering as organ, eye and tissue donors – 95 percent of whom checked “YES!” at the DMV.

“Frank Cox’s decision to register as an organ, eye and tissue donor illustrates the importance of the partnership between DMV and Donate Life California,” said DMV Chief Deputy Director Kathleen Webb. “We are thankful that Donate Life California continues to honor DMV families during the annual Rose Parade celebrations.”

The Donate Life Rose Parade® Experience will be featured in the Tournament of Roses’ Entertainment Special. This nationally televised celebration is the Tournament’s new campaign that allows sponsors to create and display floral installations. The Donate Life Rose Parade® floral installation will feature over 20 sculptures made of roses and incorporating donor hero floragraphs. Additionally, it will be accompanied by various elements honoring Donation Healthcare Heroes amid a field of dedicated roses.

“While the Rose Parade® celebrations will look different this year, we are gratified and excited that Donate Life is the Tournament of Roses only live floral production which will include the floragraph that celebrates and honors Frank’s memory,” said Tom Mone, President of the Donate Life California Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer of OneLegacy. “Frank’s legacy will live on forever because of his decision to be a donor, save and heal lives and inspire us all to register as a donor through the DMV.”

Each day, 22 people in the U.S. die waiting because the organ they needed did not become available in time. Organs needed for transplant are heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, pancreas or intestine. There are nearly 110,000 people waiting for a lifesaving transplant.

Tissue transplants, meanwhile, save and heal lives. Tissues for transplant include cornea, skin, heart valves, bone tissue, tendons, veins, ligaments and cartilage. More than a million tissue transplants occur each year, and the surgical need for tissue has been steadily rising. Corneal transplants restore sight to nearly 50,000 people each year.

Fast Facts:

  • In 2019, organ, eye and tissue donors in California saved more than 4,400 lives, and improved thousands more with eye and tissue donation.
  • 22 people across the country die each day awaiting life-saving organ transplants.
  • Over 21,500 people (about 19 percent of the national list) who wait for a life-saving organ transplant live in California.

About the 2021 Donate Life Rose Parade® Experience

While the traditional Rose Parade festivities have been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Donate Life Rose Parade® Experience will be participating in the Tournament of Roses’ floral celebration this year. Frank, along with other donors, will be featured in the 2021 Donate Life Rose Parade® Experience’s floral installation, which incorporates floragraphs to honor organ, eye and tissue donors, along with other elements honoring Donation Healthcare Heroes. This installation will be featured in the Tournament of Roses’ Entertainment Special, airing on television nationally on January 1st, 2021 at 8:00am PST.

 

About Donate Life California:

The Donate Life California Organ & Tissue Donor Registry is the nonprofit, state-authorized organ, eye and tissue donor registry. As a public service, the registry assures that all personal information is kept confidential and stored in a secure database, accessible only to authorized organ and tissue recovery personnel at the time of an actual donation opportunity. The registry is administered by Donate Life California and California’s four nonprofit, federally designated organ recovery organizations: Donor Network West, Lifesharing, OneLegacy and Sierra Donor Services. For more information about Donate Life California; how organ, eye and tissue donation saves and improves lives; and to sign up, please visit www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org or in Spanish at www.doneVIDAcalifornia.org.

More Fast Facts from Donate Life California:

  • All major religions support or permit organ, eye and tissue donation.
  • You are never too old or sick to register as an organ, eye and tissue donor.
  • Do not rule yourself out! People with all medical conditions are potential donors.

Please visit Donate Life California’s Stories of Hope web page to read inspiring stories about organ and tissue donors and recipients from around the state.

COVID-19 Dialysis & Transplant Patient Guide

We wanted to share a fantastic resource from the Transplant Research and Education Center regarding COVID-19 for transplant patients. Here is the link to the guide: https://exploretransplant.org/covid-19/ 

This guide was put together with the help of kidney and transplant educators and clinicians at UCLA, the Terasaki Institute of Biomedical Innovation (TIBI), and Health Literacy Media. Patients also submitted their questions, shared their experiences seeking care at this time, and  provided input throughout the design process for this resource. Thank you to all who contributed!

The guide includes relevant information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as from kidney and transplant organizations including the American Society of Transplantation (AST), the American Society of Nephrology (ASN), and the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS).

Major topics covered include how to:

  • Prevent getting and spreading COVID-19.
  • Maintain your health and follow your kidney, dialysis, and transplant regimen.
  • Monitor yourself for COVID-19 symptoms and get prepared if you need to act.
  • Seek medical care if your health worsens.
  • Stay calm and supported.

The guide and our website are updated weekly as new information becomes available. During a challenging and unprecedented time, we hope this patient-centered guide will help dialysis and transplant patients across the country.

We have also launched an educational campaign across our social media channels to help spread the word about our guide, and to provide digestible chunks of health information and tips based on the education. We would be delighted if you would join us in sharing about this resource on social media by re-sharing our announcement and any educational content that appeals to you or your audience. Stay tuned for engaging content over the coming weeks!

Social Media Accounts for Explore Transplant:

Instagram: @exploretransplant
Facebook: Explore Transplant
Twitter: @exploretxplant
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/19130338