A flag-raising ceremony is happening Tuesday at Confederation Park to raise awareness about the importance of registering to become an organ donor.
The steps and walls of Kingston city hall will be covered in green.
This is to mark Organ Donation Month in April, a campaign to raise awareness of the importance of being an organ donor.
Theresa Whelan-Witjes is the Treasurer of Transplant Advocate Association in Kingston. She is also a liver transplant recipient.
Whelan-Witjes tells us what her organization does to promote organ donation.
There are currently around 1,700 people waiting for a transplant whether it is a heart, lung, kidney, liver or other vital organs.
Registering to become a donor is as simple as renewing your driver's license or health card.
But Whelan-Witjes says talking to your family about your wishes is as, if not more, important.
There are over 60,000 people (or 50 percent of the population) living in Kingston that are registered organ donors. In Ontario, 35 percent of the population are registered.
While a majority of those registered are people over the age of 40, there are a number of them between 16 and 30 years of age who are registered.
Whelan-Witjes says young people is one demographic that is eager to register.
There will be a ceremony at Confederation Park on Tuesday to raise the Be A Donor flag outside City Hall from 5 pm to 6 pm. City Hall will also be lit up in green in the evening.
Tuesday also marks Green Shirt Day in honour of Logan Boulet. Boulet was a junior hockey player and one of 16 people killed in the Humboldt Broncos bus crash on April 6, 2018.
Whelan says Boulet's parents honoured his wishes and donated his organs the following day.
More information on how to become an organ donor is at the BeADonor website.
Story by Ken Hashizume
