Fireworks Show to Cap ARORA's Function at Clinton Junction

    LITTLE ROCK, AR, April 17, 2015 /24-7PressRelease/ -- In celebration of National Donate Life Month, the Arkansas Regional Organ Recovery Agency (ARORA) will host the Function at the Clinton Junction Bridge Party and Fun Walk on Thursday, April 30th from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Junction Bridge in downtown Little Rock. Alyson Courtney, anchor of KATV's "Daybreak," will serve as grand marshal of the walk. The event will feature live music, refreshments and giveaways and is free and open to the public. Everyone is encouraged to wear blue and green in recognition of the national organ, tissue and eye donation colors.

"The month of April is about celebrating life; those who became organ and tissue donors, and as well as those individuals who have received transplanted organs and tissue," Audrey Coleman, Director of Public Education said. "ARORA is excited to host this bridge party and fun walk and provide another opportunity for Arkansans to register as organ and tissue donors."

KATV's Alyson Courtney will lead participants across the Junction Bridge to North Little Rock, where North Little Rock city officials, families of organ and tissue donors and ARORA staff and volunteers will hold a brief ceremony in honor of those who have given the gift of life. The walk back across the bridge to the Little Rock side will be capped off with a fireworks show, which also will mark the conclusion of Donate Life Month. There will also be on-site donor registration. ARORA staff will be available to answer questions about donation.

Despite widespread support for organ donation, a severe shortage in the number of organs donated still exists:
• More than 124,000 Americans are on a waiting list for a kidney, heart, liver or other vital organs.
• Another person is added to the waiting list every 16 minutes.
• An average of 18 individuals will die each day while waiting for an available organ.

Registering as an organ and tissue donor is easy. Arkansas' online donor registry is available at Donatelifearkansas.org.

About ARORA
The Arkansas Regional Organ Recovery Agency (ARORA) was established in 1987 as a non-profit, independent organ procurement agency. ARORA is headquartered in Little Rock, with a satellite office in Fayetteville. Serving 64 counties in the state, ARORA's mission is to make every effort to provide organs and tissues for life-saving and life-enhancing transplantation. As part of the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), ARORA is certified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

For more information about the Function at the Clinton Junction, call Stephanie Jackson at 501.492.4900 or email at [email protected].

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