Bayview Bridge will glow purple in honor of organ donation

At the request of Blessing Hospital Life Team members, city of Quincy leaders have agreed to change the color of the Bayview Bridge lights for a week in November to help raise awareness of the need for organ and tissue donation. In honor of the Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Awareness Network’s National Donor Sabbath event, the Bayview Bridge lights will glow purple from November 8-14.

During National Donor Sabbath, faith leaders, donor families, transplant recipients, and donation and transplantation professionals participate in services and programs to increase awareness of the need for the lifesaving and enhancing gifts passed to others through transplantation and encourage people to sign up in their state registry.

The bridge lights will again shine purple for a week in April 2021 in honor of National Donate Life Month.

Finally, in the future, when an organ or tissue donation is made by a Blessing Hospital patient, and when it is possible, the lights of the Bayview Bridge will glow purple for a designated period of time in honor the donation.

Blessing Hospital’s Life Team is made up of a variety of health care professionals and support staff who assist the loved ones of patients during the donation process, help raise awareness and educate the public and hospital staff about organ and tissue donation, and are responsible for Blessing’s policies and procedures regarding organ and tissue donation.

“We are grateful for the city’s partnership in this visual reminder of the importance of organ and tissue donation,” said Maureen Kahn, MSN, RN, MHA, President/Chief Executive Officer, Blessing Health System/Blessing Hospital. “The understanding of the importance of organ and tissue donation throughout the Quincy area says much about the compassion of the people who live here.”

There are currently more than 100,000 people on the organ and tissue donor waiting list in the United States.  Nearly 5,000 of those people are in Illinois. In response, 6.5 million people 18 years of age and older in Illinois are registered as organ and tissue donors.

For more information on organ and tissue donation, go to giftofhope.org. Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network is a not-for-profit organ procurement organization (OPO) that coordinates organ and tissue donation and provides public education on donation in Illinois and northwest Indiana. It is one of 58 OPOs that make up the nation’s donation system.