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enlarged image.
Katherine
attended the First Annual "Share The Beat Gala" on Saturday,
September 20th at the Cicada Restaurant, in downtown Los
Angeles. The event was organised and hosted by the
James Redford Institute for
Transplant Awareness and the
Coalition on Donation. Special guests included Oscar®-winning filmmaker
Robert Redford, who, along with his son, James Redford,
co-founded the James Redford Institute for Transplant Awareness
(JRI) in
1995. The younger Redford himself is a successful transplant
recipient.
The
Coalition on Donation is a not-for-profit alliance of national
organizations and local coalitions across the United States
dedicated to inspiring all people to donate life through organ
and tissue donation. The Coalition’s efforts focus on the
life-saving aspects of donation and encourage people to take
action now to ensure their donation wishes are carried out
later.
Katherine and her mother
Nancy were both on the Planning Committee for the "Share The
Beat Gala". Organ and tissue donation is a subject very
close to
their hearts, as Katherine's brother Jason was a donor. Nancy also
spoke at the event, telling the audience "that there was never a
doubt in her family's mind that Jason would have wanted his
organs donated for transplant". She called this gesture "Jason's
last gift for a world he had the greatest affection for."
JRI and The
Coalition on Donation have been working together closely since
1999 to educate the general public about organ and tissue
donation and how it can bring hope and life-saving treatment to
the nearly 83,000 people (US) that are currently waiting for a
transplant.
Katherine
Heigl Online recognises the importance of raising awareness of
organ and tissue donation and would like to pledge our support
to this lifesaving cause. Find out how you can help by clicking
on one of the images below:
Many thanks to Denise Tripp at
UNOS for the photographs
provided. Please do not use without permission.
