The Donate Life Run/Walk Goes Virtual to Celebrate 18 Years of Inspiring Local Communities to Donate Life

Facebook Live Broadcast this Saturday, April 25, to Feature ABC7 Anchor Phillip Palmer, Grammy Award-Winning Music Group All-4-One, NASCAR Racer and Donor Son Joey Gase, and Many More

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Continuing its mission to inspire local communities to donate life through meaningful events, and in response to the current COVID-19 state and federal recommendations to shelter in place, OneLegacy’s Donate Life Run/Walk is going virtual in 2020. The first Donate Life Virtual Run/Walk will include a special broadcast on YouTube and Facebook Live this Saturday, April 25, at 10 a.m. PDT.

As the largest event of its kind in the nation, the Donate Life Run/Walk gathers over 12,000 participants at Cal State Fullerton every year to celebrate the power of donation and transplantation. The first virtual run/walk is inviting organ, eye and tissue donation advocates, as well as health and wellness enthusiasts, to join the live broadcast from home and participate in their own way.

“Whether they eat their breakfast from their couch, run or walk around the block, or pace from the hallway to their kitchen, we want participants to join us on YouTube or Facebook Live for a unique experience tailored to these unique times,” said Kathleen Hostert, executive director of the run/walk and public education manager for OneLegacy, the nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives through organ, eye and tissue donation in the seven-county greater Los Angeles area. “For the last 17 years, we have gathered thousands of participants and volunteers at Cal State Fullerton to share the importance of organ, eye and tissue donation. My husband, Craig, and I look forward to our 2020 virtual run/walk, expanding our reach beyond Southern California to several states in the U.S. and countries around the world. This will be a wonderful event to honor the power of organ, eye and tissue donation.”

A moving opening ceremony will start the broadcast, co-hosted by ABC7’s news anchor Phillip Palmer as well as longtime Donate Life Run/Walk host Jim Rhoads. Special appearances include Grammy award-winning music group All-4-One; NASCAR racer and donor son Joey Gase; and dozens of organ, eye and tissue donation advocates who will open their homes to share their experience and inspire those watching the virtual event.

A VIRTUAL EVENT FOR DONOR FAMILIES, RECIPIENTS AND DONATION ADVOCATES

For the 18th consecutive year, hundreds of donor family members will participate to honor the memory of their loved ones. More than 200 donor family teams will join 22 hospital teams and nearly 2,500 participants that include dozens of hospitals; organ, eye and tissue recipients; health and fitness enthusiasts; and corporate and community groups to celebrate the gift of life.

Since 2007, team Schreiber has gathered every last Saturday in April to honor the life and legacy of David Schreiber. David was 43 when, in 2005, he suddenly passed away from a massive stroke. He was a Long Beach native who believed in family and community. He left behind a wife, an 18-year-old daughter, a 3-day-old son, a brother, sister, niece and nephew. It was his wish in life to donate upon his death, and OneLegacy helped fulfill that wish for David when the time came. David donated his liver, tissue and corneas.

Sharon remembers her first Donate Life Run/Walk, “My son, Aaron, was a toddler when we participated in our first run/walk; and our daughter had just graduated high school. Alexandria as an adult never misses the chance to attend the run/walk to honor her father, and Aaron is now 14 and has not missed one yet! The Donate Life Run/Walk is a special event for us to remember David’s life and for Alex and Aaron to learn more about their dad’s story and the many lives David healed and saved through organ, eye and tissue donation.”

The Donate Life Virtual Run/Walk is produced by OneLegacy, the largest organ procurement organization in the U.S. dedicated to saving lives through organ, eye and tissue donation in seven Southern California counties.

“Donate Life Month is celebrated every year in April, and we are excited to expand our reach on our first Donate Life Virtual Run/Walk,” said Tom Mone, CEO of OneLegacy. “We look forward to inspiring those who join us on social media, whether they belong to the communities we serve or are joining us from cities across the U.S. and beyond, to register as donors and help save the lives of nearly 113,000 people across the country who are currently waiting for a lifesaving transplant.”

All proceeds from the Donate Life Virtual Run/Walk benefit the OneLegacy Foundation, with a goal to enhance OneLegacy’s public education efforts to inspire others to donate life and conduct research studies to improve the lives of recipients and optimize the organ, eye and tissue recovery process.

The 2020 sponsors for OneLegacy’s first Donate Life Virtual Run/Walk include ABC7, Albertsons, Vons, Pavillions, W.L. Butler, The Whole Enchilada, CareDx, Cedars-Sinai, Century 21, UC Irvine Health, Skechers, R. J. Noble, Tangent Systems, Greystone, CRCA (Consumer Reporting Compliance Associates) and Wescom.

For additional information and to register online to participate in this year’s Donate Life Virtual Run/Walk, visit DonateLifeRunWalk.org, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

To register to become an organ, eye and tissue donor, visit http://donatelifecalifornia.org/OneLegacy or http://doneVIDAcalifornia.org/OneLegacy.

About OneLegacy

OneLegacy is the nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives through organ, eye and tissue donation in the seven-county greater Los Angeles area. With more than 200 hospitals, 10 transplant centers and a diverse population of 22 million, OneLegacy is the largest organ, eye and tissue recovery organization in the world.

For more information about OneLegacy, visit OneLegacy.org, like us on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200423005867/en/

Tania Llavaneras
213-503-9285
[email protected]

Source: OneLegacy

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