Donate Life Pennsylvania today launched a new campaign that highlights everyday differences, preferences and lifestyle choices as a way to unify Pennsylvanians in support of organ donation registration.
“The Commonwealth is a diverse state, with urban, suburban and rural communities, and despite that diversity, as Pennsylvanians, we all share common values,” said Susan Stuart, President and CEO of the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) in Pittsburgh. “The new campaign features some of our most common differences, both serious and some more light-hearted, as a way to highlight our shared values, and demonstrate that registering to be an organ donor is something we can all agree on.”
“The messages within the campaign are unifying and empowering, with a dose of personality,” said Howard M. Nathan, President and CEO of Gift of Life (GOL) Donor Program in Philadelphia. “We hope that the campaign resonates and motivates anyone who is not registered to be an organ donor, as there are more than 7,000 people in Pennsylvania currently waiting for a life-saving organ transplant.”
The campaign will be seen throughout Pennsylvania and includes copy like, “Do you prefer soda or pop?” “Are you an introvert or extrovert?” “Would you rather take part in a marathon or a movie-thon?” tagged with the same, unifying message: “We all have our differences, and a way to make a difference. Be an organ donor.” with the call to action “Register Now.” that links to donatelifepa.org/registration.
“A critical public health issue like organ donation should bring us together as Pennsylvanians, it should be greater than our differences and motivate us all to be part of the solution,” said Dr. Rachel Levine, Secretary of Health of Department of Health (DOH) of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. “We are excited to launch this campaign on the heels of Governor Wolf signing the Donate Life Bill, now Act 90, marking the first update to Pennsylvania’s organ donor laws in nearly 20 years. Both will have a positive impact on organ donation registration and hopefully save more lives.”
Anyone can sign up to be a donor, regardless of age or medical history. There is no cost to donors and their families, and all major religions in the United States support organ and tissue donation and consider it a final act of love and generosity toward others. It only takes 30 seconds to register on the website, donatelifepa.org/registration.
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About Donate Life PA
Donate Life Pennsylvania is a collaborative initiative between the Pennsylvania Departments of Health, Education and Transportation and Pennsylvania’s two organ procurement organizations, the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) and Gift of Life Donor Program (GOL). It is funded by residents of Pennsylvania through voluntary contributions included with driver’s license renewals, vehicle registrations and state income tax filings, or through direct check donations to the Governor Robert P. Casey Memorial Organ and Tissue Donation Awareness Trust Fund in care of the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Trust Fund contributions are used to educate Pennsylvanians, build awareness about the importance of organ & tissue donation and increase the number of people who sign up to become organ donors on their driver’s license or state identification cards. More information is available at donatelifepa.org or Facebook.com/DonateLifePennsylvania.
About the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE)
CORE is one of 58 federally designated not-for-profit OPOs in the United States. CORE works closely with donor families and designated health care professionals to coordinate the surgical recovery of organs, tissues and corneas for transplantation. CORE also facilitates the computerized matching of donated organs and placement of corneas. With headquarters in Pittsburgh and an office in Charleston, West Virginia, CORE oversees a region that encompasses 150 hospitals and more than five million people throughout western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Chemung County, New York.
About Gift of Life Donor Program (GOL)
Gift of Life Donor Program is the non-profit, federally-designated organ procurement organization, serving 11.2 million people across the eastern half of Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware. Its annual donation rate ranks among the highest in the world. Since 1974, Gift of Life has coordinated more than 46,000 life-saving organs for transplant, and approximately one million tissue transplants have resulted from the generosity of donors and their families. One organ donor can save the lives of up to eight people, and a tissue donor can enhance the lives of more than 75 others. For more information or to register, visit donors1.org.
