Action day to save lives

Wishaw residents are being urged to mark next month’s World Kidney Day by adding their names to the Organ Donor Register and giving the gift of life.

Organisers of a World Kidney Day family fun event at Strathclyde Park hope that more than 200 visitors will use the occasion to pledge to donate their organs in the event of their death.

World Kidney Day will be marked around the globe on March 8.

Wishaw woman Karen Casey, who received the life transforming kidney transplant she had longed for in 2014, is behind the event in Strathclyde Park on Saturday, March 10.

Karen, now aged 50, was only 19 years old when she received the devastating news that her kidneys would last only 10 years.

She spent a gruelling four years on dialysis for more than four hours a day, three days a week.

That was until she received the kidney of a 50-year-old Irish donor.

And she says she’s eternally grateful to him and his relatives for having the “two-minute conversation” about his wish to donate his organs in the event of his death.

Last year, 431 people in Scotland had their lives transformed through organ donation.

There are currently approximately 580 people with life- threatening illnesses who are on the transplant waiting list.

Karen, of Thornlie Gill, Wishaw, says a family member is twice as likely to agree to donation if they know it’s what their loved one would have wanted.

She and other members of Team Lanarkshire, which competed in last year’s British Transplant Games at Strathclyde Park, have brought together a number of agencies for the family fun day on March 10.

On hand will be Organ Donation Scotland, community police officers and fire fighters.

A team of nurses will be offering blood pressure checks to make visitors more aware of the importance of kidney health.

Scottish Archery will be giving demonstrations and there will also be bouncy castles and face-painting for the kids.

“The event is all about promoting the organ donor list and getting a minimum of 200 people along to sign up,” explained Karen, who is secretary of the Lanarkshire Kidney Patient Association.

Karen and fellow Team Lanarkshire members will also be promoting transplant sports at the event and seeking new members.

The event will run from 10am to 4pm on March 10.

If your organisation would like to be involved, ema i l lanarkshireadults@ gmail. com or call Karen on 0745 4663400. To join the Organ Donor Register, visit www. organdonationscotland.org