Augusta, Ga. (April 5, 2024) – Piedmont Augusta held a Donate Life flag-raising ceremony Wednesday, April 3, at 1:08 p.m., on the front lawn of the main hospital.
The Donate Life flag is a symbol of unity and hope, and honors and celebrates the hundreds of thousands of donors whose generosity provided renewed life for patients in need and recipients whose lives have been affected by organ, eye and tissue donation. The significance of the time is that one donor can impact up to eight individuals.
“Organ and tissue donation can save and improve lives in our community, across Georgia and across the nation, and Piedmont Augusta wants to help drive that point home with this symbolic flag,” said Lily Henson, M.D., Piedmont Augusta CEO. “Joining the Donor Registry gives hope to those in need of organ and tissue transplants, while leaving a legacy of generosity for the donor and his or her family. Currently, there are more than 100,000 individuals in the United States waiting for their gift of life and over 3,000 of those are our friends and neighbors in Georgia and even Augusta.”
Piedmont Augusta joins several other Piedmont hospitals across the state celebrating Donate Life Month with flag-raising events and other activities. At the April 3 event, Melissa Fedlhuas shared how her son Rowan Feldhaus was an organ donor in 2017 at age 25, and was able to donate both kidneys, his liver, heart and both lungs. Melissa said, “People like to say that Rowan was a hero for being able to save lives through organ donation. But, he would say that the true heroes are the nurses and caregivers who helped us navigate that difficult time.” Melissa has been a volunteer for LifeLink for several years, and keeps her son’s memory alive by speaking about his lifesaving donation.
Throughout the month of April, which is celebrated as Donate Life Month, numerous hospitals and municipalities across the country are holding flag-raising ceremonies as a nationwide display of unity, remembrance and hope, while honoring those touched by donation and transplantation. Piedmont Augusta is proud to participate in this outreach.
In 2023, Piedmont Augusta had five donors that resulted in 10 organs transplanted.
No matter your age, pre-existing health conditions, lifestyle, religion, etc. you can register to save lives through organ and tissue donation. Approximately 17 people die every day while awaiting a lifesaving transplant and a new name is added to the organ waiting list every nine minutes.
In 2023, more than 46,000 organ transplants were performed in the United States. This is an increase of more than 8.7 percent since 2022 and a new annual record. If you are not a registered donor, please consider registering today.