CHARLESTON, W.Va.– Donor families and recipients learned that with every organ, tissue or cornea someone donates, they can save the life of eight people, at the annual CORE event Sunday.
CORE, Center for Organ Recovery and Education, held a ceremony for donor families, donor recipient and patients who are still waiting for that life-saving transplant, at the Clay Center in Charleston.
CEO and president of CORE, Susan Stuart, said that the event is all about honoring families and recipients.
“And it is our way to honor donor families and their loved one who gave the greatest gift possible, the gift of life. And so, what we do, we invite donors from the previous year to come to our event,” Stuart said.
And one of the things that they had in honor for the donors from previous years, were four different quilts that was made from quilt pieces that the donor’s family brought in to show who these donors were. Stuart encouraged donor families to either bring a quilt piece to the event or mail it to them so their loved ones could be featured on the next quilt that they make.
One recipient Larry Moore, 68, of Charleston says the experience was all about being patient with the process.
“It was a true blessing. I was on dialysis in Dunbar for maybe three years, three and a half years, “Moore said. “And just being patient, praying and waiting. When you got the news, it was overwhelming, because the machine is great, but it can wear you out.”
And when Moore received the call, he was happy to receive the one kidney, but a blessing in disguise was waiting for him at the hospital.
“When that call did come, I was at home when I received the call to go to CAMC here in Charleston that they did find a kidney for me,” Moore said. “Which was great, and I didn’t know until I was there at the hospital, getting prepped, that I was going to get two kidneys. I’m a double kidney transplant recipient, I was just looking for one but was blessed enough to receive two. That was a blessing within itself.”
While CORE, was a big part of the process Moore and many others have gone through, he counted on his family to get him through the tough times.
“My biggest supporter was my family. CORE was great but your biggest supporter is your family,” Moore said. “Because you really need that push, that back to help you over the highs and lows, don’t give, lift your head up, it’s going to get better. That’s your biggest supporter is your family to get you through the rough edges.”
CORE got started in 1992 in Pennsylvania but has left a footprint for 5.2 million people, and at the event there were about 300 to 400 people. Stuart hopes that the CORE events help donor families with healing after the loss of their loved one.
“And it’s really our hope that this will serve as a way for these families to know their loved ones will never be forgotten and also to give them hope for healing,” Stuart said. “Because our mission is to save and heal lives through donations.”
The event featured three different speakers, a family of a little girl who was able to donate organs to save two little kids and donate both of her kidneys to save an adult man, a kidney donor recipient and a patient who is still on the waiting list.
They also served lunch for the guests and ended on a donor family group honor walk.
Stuart encourages people wanting to donor, to either go to CORE’s website, register at the DMV or fill out a donation card.