California Transplant Donor Network Partners With Saturn and the Oakland As to Promote Organ, Tissue, Bone-Marrow and Blood Donation

Business Wire, Feb 7, 2003

News Editors/Health & Medical Writers

As FanFest/Saturn Donor Day Will Be Held Saturday, February 8

in Oakland

OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 7, 2003

The California Transplant Donor Network will have a special opportunity to promote organ and tissue donation at the Oakland As' FanFest, Saturday, Feb. 8, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at the Oakland Coliseum, as part of Saturn Donor Day.

The goal of the annual Saturn Donor Day is to raise national awareness of the critical need for organ, tissue, bone-marrow and blood donors to save lives. By sponsoring the Oakland As' FanFest, Saturn assures that a great number of people in our community hear that message.

On Saturday, As' fans can get more information about organ and/or tissue donation, speak to recipients and donor-family members, and receive special organ/tissue donor cards featuring As' pitcher and Cy Young Award Winner Barry Zito.

Also, in honor of Melinda Ohler, the firefighter who died last month after falling off of a fire truck, San Francisco Fire Chief Trevino and some of Ohler's colleagues from Engine Company 42 will attend the As' FanFest on Saturday between 1:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. As she had wished, Ohler's family donated her organs and five people benefited from this generous gift of life.

At the FanFest, As' fans will have the opportunity to donate blood or join the National Bone-Marrow Donor Registry through the American Red Cross. Special events featuring players and coaches will be held. Tickets for the event are available in advance at As' Ticket Services and online at www.tickets.com or at the Arena Box Office and at Gate D on the day of the event.

The California Transplant Donor Network believes increased health and wellness in our communities will lessen the need for organ transplantation. The Transplant Network participates in a number of community events, as the visibility of the great need for organ donation in Northern and Central California communities -- among every age, race and culture -- will help residents make decisions about donating their organs when they no longer need them, and more people will be saved by organ transplants.

Some Facts About Organ and Tissue Donation

-- More than 80,000 people in the United States are waiting for a vital organ transplant. As of January 31, 2003, 7,864 of these are in the Transplant Network's Northern and Central California service area.

-- Each day, more than 17 people -- one every two hours -- die in the United States because of a shortage of organ donors. An average of 13 people is added to the national waiting list for organs every day.

-- One person can save as many as seven lives through organ donation, and touch more than 50 others with tissue donation. The most-important way to assure this occurs is by telling your family of your wishes about donating your organs when you no longer need them.

California Transplant Donor Network

The California Transplant Donor Network improves and extends lives by facilitating organ and tissue donation for transplantation. The Transplant Network helps 160 hospitals in 40 Northern and Central California and Northern Nevada counties offer the option of organ and tissue donation to families whose loved ones have died, coordinates deceased organ and tissue recovery and placement, and provides public education with the hope that every resident will become a donor. It is federally designated as this area's organ-procurement organization. For more information, visit www.ctdn.org or call 1-888-570-9400.

Media Notice: Media planning to cover Oakland A's FanFest 2003 are required to make their credential request in advance of the event by calling/e-mailing Debbie Gallas in the A's Public Relations Department(510/563-2207; dgallas@oaklandathletics.com).