New LifeShare memorial highlights Oklahoma organ donors

There are over 600 Oklahomans on the waiting list for a life-saving organ transplant at any given time, according to LifeShare of Oklahoma, which manages the waitlist for the state.

The Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages Porch spoke to LifeShare CEO Jeff Orlowski about the organization's new organ donor memorial in Oklahoma City.

"This memorial we built and designed to honor all the people who give the gift of life in the state of Oklahoma," Orlowski said. "Over 1,000 organ donors and over 5,000 tissue donors represent more than 3,000 lives saved."

The memorial had a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday to commemorate the structure and officially open it to the public.

"LifeShare's been around for nearly 40 years, and so what we did is pulled out of our database names that appear repeatedly, that represent men and women, that represent different ethnicities," Orlowski said. "And represent the breadth and scope of our Oklahoma population."

The organization is always encouraging people to consider being an organ donor when they register for a new license or renew existing ones.

"The most common way, of course, is for people to join the registry when they go get their driver's license," he said. "but you can also join when you get your hunting or fishing license in Oklahoma."

The national waitlist for organ recipients is approaching 110,000, and each day, somewhere between 22 and 25 people will die waiting for a transplant.

If you want to consider being a recipient, you can also go to LifeShare of Oklahoma directly or use your Android or Apple Health apps to join the registry and potentially save lives.

Head to LifeShare's official website for more details.