Saratoga Hospital Honors Organ and Tissue Donors by Raising Donate Life Flag

Contact: Peter Hopper

Saratoga Hospital

(518) 583-8679

Shaina Kaye

Center for Donation and Transplant

(518) 262-5606

Saratoga Hospital Honors Organ and Tissue Donors by Raising Donate Life Flag,

Celebrating Donate Life Month

April 2016– Saratoga Hospitalwill be flying a Donate Life flag for the duration of National Donate Life Month, a month-long celebration held every April that showcases the lifesaving benefits of donation and encourages New Yorkers to enroll in the New York State Donate Life Donor Registry.

The intent of the flag is to not only celebrate the heroic decision to donate life, but to raise awareness of the importance of organ and tissue donation. The flags are provided by the Center for Donation and Transplant (CDT), the organ procurement organization that facilitates organ and tissue donation in 30 counties throughout New York and Western Vermont. Once the flags are raised and flown, CDT’s family services specialists send the flags to the donors’ families as a keepsake to remember their loved one.

The hospital will also join CDT in participating in a number of different events supporting the incredible gifts of life given by donors and raising awareness about the importance of signing up on the New York State Donate Life Registry, including participation in National Wear Blue and Green Day, held on April 15, 2016.

Saratoga Hospital Quote

“Saratoga Hospital has always been an incredible partner, compassionate in their support for donor families and committed to celebrating those who have given the gifts of life through organ and tissue donation,” Lauren Quinn, Director of Hospital and Community Services at the Center for Donation and Transplant said. “The fact that the flag is flown in their loved one’s honor is incredibly meaningful to our donor families. This April, we hope that the flags also spread the message of the life-saving benefits of donation and encourage community members to learn more and register as donors on the New York State Donate Life Organ and Tissue Registry.”

More than 10,200 New Yorkers are currently waiting for a life-saving organ transplant, and every 10 minutes, another person is added to the national transplant waiting list. Sadly, an average of one New Yorker passes every 15 because the organs they need are not available. Despite the urgent need, New York State ranks as one of the lowest states in the nation when it comes to the number of eligible residents on the New York State Donate Life Registry, with only 25 percent of eligible residents registered in comparison to the national average of 50 percent. Those that do receive the call that they’ve long been waiting for – that a matching, healthy, transplantable organ has been found – are given a second chance at life.

To register as a donor or for more information about how to get involved, please visit the Center for Donation and Transplant’s website at

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About The Center for Donation & Transplant:

The Center for Donation & Transplant facilitates organ and tissue donation in northeastern New York and western Vermont. CDT ensures that the option of donation is offered to families in an informative and compassionate manner, and provides long-term support and comfort to families and hospital personnel involved in the donation process.