— Former Chicago Bulls Forward and Radio/TV Personality Help Gift of Hope Observe and Celebrate National Donate Life Month —
Chicago, IL — Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network will team with former Chicago Bulls forward Bob Love and radio/TV personality Darryll King, to conduct a donation awareness and education campaign at barbershops and beauty salons in Chicago’s south suburbs from 10 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Saturday, April 11, 2015.The barber shop/beauty salon donation awareness and education tour will be held to commemorate National Donate Life Month in April, and is part of Gift of Hope’s ongoing Mayors for Hope and Churches for Hope campaigns, which kicked off in March. The campaigns seek to convey the message to communities about the importance of organ and tissue donation and the tremendous impact that being a registered donor can have on people’s lives.
Marion Shuck, Gift of Hope’s Manager of Community Affairs, said African-Americans and Hispanics top the list of people currently waiting for lifesaving organ transplants, kidney transplants in particular because the prevalence of end-stage renal disease is higher in these cultural groups than in others. More than 123,000 people are currently waiting for organ transplants in the United States, 101,000 of whom need kidney transplants. African-Americans make up 34 percent of this group, and Hispanics make up 19 percent.
“It’s important for us to speak with people rather than speaking at people in conveying our message about the importance of being a registered organ and tissue donor and the vital need for kidney transplants among African-Americans and Hispanics,” said Jack Lynch, Gift of Hope’s Director of Community Affairs. “We must dispel myths and misinformation about donation to raise the bar on organ and tissue donation awareness and education, and we need people to realize that now, more than ever, it could be them in need of an organ transplant.”
Lynch, Love, King and Shuck will start their south suburban tour 10 a.m. on April 11, spending about 15 minutes at each of more than a dozen south suburban barber shops and beauty salons, which include:
* Yehia Hair Designs (Country Club Hills)
* New ERA Barbershop (Country Club Hills)
* Next Barbershop (Country Club Hills)
* Mena’s Hair Design (Country Club Hills)
* Cliff’s Barber Style Shop (Hazel Crest)
* Juanita’s Chicago Style & Jae’s Barber (Hazel Crest)
* Flawlezz Hair & Beauty Bar (Markham)
* Robyn’s Hair Nest (Harvey)
* DNA Styles Barbershop (Harvey)
* Nefertiti Hair Designs (Harvey)
* Smoking Joe’s Barber & Beauty Shop (Harvey)
* Barber Clique (Dolton)
* JR’s Barbershop (South Holland)
* Mena’s Hair Design (Lansing)
About Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network:
Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network is a not-for-profit organ procurement organization entrusted by the nation’s healthcare system with coordinating organ and tissue donation and providing donor family services and public education in Illinois and northwest Indiana. Since 1987, it has coordinated donations that have saved the lives of more than 20,000 organ transplant recipients and improved the lives of hundreds of thousands of tissue transplant recipients. As one of 58 organ procurement organizations that make up the nation’s organ and tissue donation system, Gift of Hope works with 180 hospitals and serves 12 million residents in its donation service area. It also is part of Donate Life Illinois, a coalition of agencies responsible for organ, tissue, eye, blood and marrow donation, as well as donor education and registration, in Illinois. For more information about Gift of Hope and organ and tissue donation, visit www.giftofhope.org
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