August was National Minority Donor Awareness Month, an observance to bring awareness to the impact of organ donation in multicultural communities. In Florida, more than 5,000 people are awaiting a lifesaving organ transplant and 36% of those waiting are African American.
One registered donor can save up to 8 lives through organ donation, give two individuals the gift of sight through cornea donation and provide healing and mobility to 75 more through the life-enhancing gift of tissue donation. The impact of one person’s Gift of Life is endless. Like a stone dropped in water, an endless ripple of hope is sent into the world.
The ripple of hope can have a profound effect on transplant recipients like Charlyce, who is an accomplished gospel singer, author, and entrepreneur. She is alive today because someone said, “yes” to organ donation. As a teen, Charlyce was diagnosed with kidney failure and placed on dialysis. After three years of prayer, she and her family received the call they had been waiting for during a Sunday morning church service and later that day, she received a lifesaving kidney transplant. Charlyce later experienced other medical challenges such as having a hip replacement and suffering a brain hemorrhage, but through it all, she is grateful to have fully recovered.
Because of the generosity of her organ donor hero and family, Charlyce lives out her purpose of showing God’s love through sharing her personal testimony and musical gift. To witness her live out her purpose, or to witness her musical gift live, attend her show “The Anita Baker Experience” on September 3 at 6pm visit www.charlycemusic.com .
For more information about organ donation or to register you decision, visit www.DonateLifeFlorida.org.
