It’s easy to Donate Life this April

I had the opportunity a few years ago to interview an interesting pair of women in Poplar Bluff.

Aimee was a mother of two who been on dialysis for years, a process that took three hours a day, three days a week. It was a process that, while it saved her life, could also leave her tired and with no energy. She had suffered from a blood disorder that affected her kidneys for many years.

Aimee had been on a waiting list for a new kidney for a while when someone close to her decided to get tested, ending up as a match.

It was her ex-husband’s wife, Jessica.

The women had been good friends for a while, they told me. Aimee had even taken care of the cake and flowers for Jessica’s wedding.

Organ donation wasn’t something Jessica had thought about, but she saw the need Aimee had, how much she and her children needed this.

It was a donation that not only freed Aimee from the regular dialysis, but gave her more energy for her young children and better health overall.

I share this story because April is Donate Life Month.

While Aimee and Jessica’s story is certainly unique, there are also other ways we can all be part of Donate Life Month.

I want to thank Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center for helping me this week to sign up with Donate Life America, an organization that works toward increasing the number of donated organs.

I didn’t realize it until PBRMC shared information earlier this week about Donate Life Month, but it takes less than five minutes on an iPhone.

Registration to be an organ, eye, and tissue donor can be done at www.SayYesGiveLife.org or in the Medical ID tab of your iPhone Health app.

I chose to use my Health app and the process was extremely quick and easy.

I always check the box on my driver’s license and my family and I have had many conversations about the subject, but this was an extra step to make sure my wishes are known.

According to Donate Life America, another person is added to the organ donation list every nine minutes. Every day, 17 people die while waiting for an organ transplant. One organ, eye and tissue donor can save and heal more than 75 lives.

If you’re interested in learning more about organ donation, Donate Life America has resources to help understand donation at https://donatelife.net/.

Donna Farley is the editor at the Daily American Republic. She can be reached at dfarley@darnews.com.