SSM Health hospitals in Fond du Lac, Ripon, and Waupun are among dozens of hospitals and organizations nationwide on Wednesday, April 8 to honor organ, tissue and eye donors and their families and promote awareness of organ, tissue and eye donation and the need for registered donors.

SSM Health Ripon Community Hospital, 845 Parkside Street, will host a Donate Life flag-raising ceremony and moment of silence on April 8 at 10 am. At 11 am, SSM Health St. Agnes Hospital, 430 E. Division Street, Fond du Lac, will host its ceremony and moment of silence.

SSM Health Waupun Memorial Hospital, 620 W. Brown Street, will raise its Donate Life flag on Wednesday morning.

This year’s theme, “Leave a Legacy,” uses trees as a symbol of life and connection. Just as trees grow and support each other in a forest, Donation connects and supports people – donors, recipients, and their families. Like a tree that grows and stands for generations, a donor’s gift leaves a legacy of hope and life for generations.

Help us to honor and remember both living and deceased donors and bring new life and inspiration to those waiting for a second chance at life.

The Donate Life flag was first introduced in 2006. Since then, it has become a national symbol of unity, remembrance, and hope, while honoring those touched by donation and transplantation. Over the past 20 years, more than 100,000 Donate Life flags have flown across America.

One donor can save eight lives. The flag ceremony’s moment of silence recognizes the more than 108,000 patients waiting for a life-saving transplant. Of those patients, more than 1,600 are in Wisconsin.

Anyone age 15 or older can register as a donor regardless of age, health, gender or ethnic or racial background. Nearly 3 million Wisconsin residents, or 57 percent of those eligible, have said “Yes” to donation. 

Register as an organ, tissue and eye donor at the DMV or online at HeroicDeed.com.