ELKINS, W.Va. – Many folks enjoy watching the Tournament of Roses Parade each year – and this year, the Davis Medical Center and Broaddus Hospital region will be represented with a rose vial signed by local representatives at both medical facilities.
Vance Jackson, President and CEO of Davis Health System, and Dana Gould, CEO of Broaddus Hospital, joined the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) for a rose vial signing ceremony.
The rose vial will be placed on the Donate Life Rose Parade float featured at the 2019 Tournament of Roses Parade on Jan. 1, 2019 in Pasadena, CA.
The Donate Life Rose Parade float is celebrating its 16th year in the parade and is the centerpiece of a national effort of more than 50 organizations to reach a broad audience with the simple, life-saving message that organ donation saves and heals lives.
“We are honored to contribute to this float, which commemorates donors who have given the gift of life, while encouraging those watching at home to register as organ, tissue and cornea donors,” said Michelle Stanton, BSN, RN, Chief Quality Officer/Risk Manager at Davis Medical Center.
The theme for the 130th Rose Parade is “The Melody of Life,” which celebrates music – the universal language. This year’s float entry is “Rhythm of the Heart.” The float celebrates the power of music in bringing us together.
Perhaps no act is more emblematic of bringing people together than the act of donation; a single organ donor can save the lives of up to eight people and improve the lives of as many as 75 more by donating their corneas and tissue.
As the world’s most visible campaign to inspire organ, tissue and cornea donation, the Donate Life Rose Parade float inspires viewers to help the more than one million people in need of transplants each year.
“More than a quarter of a million life-saving transplants have been performed in the United States over the last 30 years, but tragically, 20 people die each day waiting for a life-saving organ transplant,” said Susan Stuart, president and CEO of CORE. “We hope the Donate Life Rose Parade float will call attention to the importance of registering a donor and we are inspired that Davis Medical Center and Broaddus Hospital have symbolized their commitment to donation by signing a rose vial to adorn the float.
The Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) is one of 58 federally designated not-for-profit organ procurement organizations in the United States. CORE works closely with donor families and designated healthcare professionals to deliver the gift of hope by coordinating the surgical recovery of organs, tissues and corneas for transplantation. CORE also facilitates the computerized matching of donated organs, tissues and corneas.
With headquarters in Pittsburgh and an office in Charleston, W.Va., CORE oversees a region that encompasses 150 hospitals and more than 5 million people throughout western Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Chemung County, New York. Additional information is available online at www.core.org or by calling 1-800-DONORS-7.
CAPTION: CEO of Davis Health System Vance Jackson, FACHE, inscribes a rose vial that will be placed on the Center for Organ Recovery and Education (CORE) float featured in the Rose Bowl Parade on January 1.
