National Donor Sabbath 2014: Sample Volunteer Newsletter Article
During the weekend of November 14 – 16, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network’s corps of
more than 200 Advocates for Hope volunteers will join clergy members and healthcare
professionals throughout Illinois and northwest Indiana in observing National Donor Sabbath, an
interfaith celebration of the gifts of hope provided through organ and tissue donation and
transplantation. Speaking together in a collective voice, we will urge people to make faith-based
decisions to become organ and tissue donors and to register those decisions in the Illinois and
Indiana Donor Registries. Consider adding your strong voice to the group.
Nearly all religions — including Catholicism, Judaism, Islam and Hinduism — support organ and
tissue donation and view it as one of the highest expressions of compassion and generosity. Yet, a
common reason families give when they choose not to donate a loved one’s organs and tissues is
“donation is against my religion.” Although these beliefs differ from denomination to
denomination, the underlying theme is the same: Organ and tissue donation represents one of the
highest forms of compassion and giving — basic principles that all religions espouse.
While a primary focus of National Donor Sabbath is to encourage people to make faith-based
decisions to be donors, it also is a time to remember families who have lost a loved one yet gave
the greatest gift of all — the gift of life. National Donor Sabbath also encourages people to focus
thoughts and prayers on the thousands of men, women and children waiting for organs and tissue
to save or enhance their lives.
Nearly 125,000 men, women and children — including more than 5,000 in Illinois and 1,500 in
Indiana — are waiting for the gift of life, and thousands more are waiting for life-enhancing tissue
or cornea transplants. National Donor Sabbath urges all of us to let others know about this
tremendous need and to participate in a united educational celebration of life and hope.
We encourage our community to join Gift of Hope — the organ procurement organization we
volunteer for to raise public awareness of organ and tissue donation and encourage people to
register as lifesaving donors — and local religious leaders in spreading the message that, by giving
of ourselves through organ and tissue donation, we give the gift of life.
For more information on National Donor Sabbath, visit the National Donor Sabbath page on
GiftofHope.org . For more information on organ and tissue donation or to register your decision to
be a donor, visit GiftofHope.org.
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NDS 2014: Sample Volunteer Newsletter Article—Page 2
Sidebar
A National Donor Sabbath Action Plan
An act of charity. A demonstration of love. Selflessness. Stewardship. Compassion. Faith
communities throughout the world use these words to validate organ and tissue donation. And
embrace it. Gift of Hope’s corps of more than 200 Advocates for Hope volunteers encourages you
to join us in celebrating National Donor Sabbath by:
 Sharing the message that most religions view organ and tissue donation as a supreme
expression of compassion and generosity via e-mail, Facebook, Twitter and other social
media channels
 Encouraging your spiritual or religious leaders to discuss donation during a service in
November
 Leading prayer to remember those who gave life through death and those awaiting a
second chance at life made possible by donation
 Encouraging your fellow church members to make a “gift of hope” offering, rather than a
monetary offering, by placing a completed donor registration card in the offering basket
during a November service.
 Registering to be an organ and tissue donor yourself and sharing your decision with family
and friends