Jacksonville Memorial Hospital hosted a flag-raising ceremony on Tuesday, April 30, to call attention to the importance of organ and tissue donation. The event was held at 3:30 p.m. at the flagpole located near the hospital’s main entrance.
According to Gift of Hope Organ and Tissue Donor Network, which serves Illinois and northwest Indiana, nearly 5,000 Illinoisans are currently waiting for an organ transplant.
“April is National Donate Life Month,” said Carrie Carls, chief nursing officer at JMH. “We hold the flag-raising ceremony each year as a way to honor organ and tissue donors for giving the gift of life to others.”
The ceremony featured remarks by officials from Memorial Health, Saving Sight and Gift of Hope. The public was invited to attend, and Memorial staff were available in the hospital lobby to register new donors during the event.
Similar ceremonies were held at the other four Memorial Health hospitals in central Illinois.
