OneLegacy’s Donate Life Run/Walk Celebrates 20 Years of Inspiring Southern California Communities to Donate Life

Published 3 years ago via Business Wire

Special Celebration at Azusa Pacific University on June 4 to Feature Star-Studded Talent Lineup, Led by ABC7 News Anchor Phillip Palmer

Celebrating 20 years of inspiring local communities to donate life, OneLegacy’s 2022 Donate Life Run/Walk will host an in-person event on June 4 at Azusa Pacific University’s soccer fields. With a new location and a new date, OneLegacy’s largest fundraising event of the year benefiting the OneLegacy Foundation will feature a star-studded lineup, led by returning host Phillip Palmer, who is a living donor and ABC7’s news anchor.

OneLegacy’s Donate Life Run/Walk is the largest event of its kind in the nation, gathering over 12,000 participants at Cal State Fullerton in 2019, to celebrate the power of organ, eye and tissue donation and transplantation. This year’s event follows two years of celebrating virtual run/walks that streamed live on Facebook and YouTube, as a result of pandemic safety measures in Southern California.

“We are so excited to host an in-person event once again and to gather thousands of donor families, grateful recipients, living donors and donation advocates at Azusa Pacific University,” said Tom Mone, chief external affairs officer and vice president of foundation operations for OneLegacy. “We look forward to sharing a special morning with our event participants as well as with our sponsors, exhibitors, elected officials and community partners.”

A moving opening ceremony will start the broadcast, hosted by Phillip Palmer and accompanied by Univision 34 news anchor Gabriela Teissier and CBS news anchor Danya Bacchus. Special appearances include Grammy Award-winning music group All-4-One, hip-hop legend and heart recipient Kurtis Blow, and singer and performer Melody Thornton, who will be singing the National Anthem. D.J. Bunny will also be in attendance to complete the star-studded lineup to celebrate 20 years of inspiring local communities to donate life. In addition, local elected officials from the City of Azusa and other local cities and counties will also be present to share their support of organ, eye and tissue donation.

A VERY SPECIAL CELEBRATION OF LIFE FOR DONOR FAMILIES, RECIPIENTS AND DONATION ADVOCATES

Every year hundreds of donor family members participate in OneLegacy’s Donate Life Run/Walk to honor the memory of their loved ones. One hundred fifty-three donor-family teams with nearly 2,000 family members and friends will join more than 200 teams that include hospitals; organ, eye and tissue recipients; health and fitness enthusiasts; and corporate and community groups to celebrate the gift of life.

Since 2004, team Little Angel has participated in the Donate Life Run/Walk to honor the memory of their son, Hernan Aispuro, who became and organ and tissue donor at the young age of six. “Hernan died 23 years ago, and he saved four lives,” said Eva Perez, donor mom and team captain for team Little Angel. “We have honored his memory every year by gathering with our family, Hernan’s recipients and friends on this special day. We look forward to seeing Hernan’s liver recipient on June 4!”

For Rich and Donna Hansen, as well as their family and friends, 2022 will be the 17th year of participation in OneLegacy’s Donate Life Run/Walk. They walk to honor Jasun’s memory and the lives he saved as an organ donor. Jasun was hurt suddenly in 2001, and his parents were told he wasn’t going to survive. Jasun saved three lives as an organ donor. “We celebrated last year’s virtual run/walk in our neighborhood, painting the sidewalks with chalk, painting rocks, and walking with family and friends around the block,” said Donna, donor mom and team captain for Jasun Ty Hansen’s team. “I can’t wait to see everyone again in Azusa, to not only share a special day with our family and friends but also join hundreds of donor families and other participants who celebrate the gift of life with us every year.”

OneLegacy’s Donate Life 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.

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

The 2022 sponsors for OneLegacy’s 20th Annual Donate Life Run/Walk include: Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Bazic Products, CompuMed, UCI Health, A1 Party, PNG Builders, First Republic Bank, Providence St. Joseph Hospital, Specialist Direct, Renal Support Network, Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation, Ava’s Heart, UCLA Health, Century 21 Discovery, City of Hope Blood Donor Center, Loma Linda University Transplant Institute, Riverside University Health System Medical Center and Foundation, Community Tissue Services, and Max’s Mexican Cuisine.

For additional information and to register online to participate in this year’s Donate Life Run/Walk—which will be held from 7 a.m.-noon—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 OneLegacy.org/Register.

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.

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