Courtesy of Gift of Hope

February 14th was National Donor Day. To celebrate, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network announced a record number of lives saved by helping 334 donors and their families donate 1,020 organs to patients waiting for a transplant, giving them a second chance at life last year.

Despite this accomplishment, the shortage of donated organs remains critical. More than 5,200 Illinoisans currently are waiting for transplants, and the gap between the number of people waiting and available organs continues to widen. That is why today Gift of Hope invites the community to become organ and tissue donors.

Today, Hispanics are more receptive to Gift of Hope’s message about registering to become organ donors and making this matter an everyday conversation among family and friends. Consequently, the organization has raised the bar on programs and services to continue educating, inspiring and addressing their sensitive needs with initiatives such as; Scholarships for Hope, Stories for Hope and Mission Smile for Hope.

It is also important to emphasize the legislative accomplishments that have brought a positive impact to the area of organ and tissue donation in Illinois, like the signing of SB0741, the alignment of Medicare and Medicaid services, which would allow some excluded patients, a greater access to transplants, and the passing of SB0957, which allows thousands of undocumented driver’s to register as donors when they apply for their temporary driver’s licenses.