Donor recipient shares experience as Mayor Conger proclaims Donate Life Month

JACKSON, Tenn. — One local city is recognizing organ donors and recipients.

City of Jackson Mayor Scott Conger made a proclamation Friday morning celebrating those who are organ donors, and those who have received organs from these donations.

“Therefore I, Scott Conger, Mayor of the City of Jackson, Tennessee, do hereby proclaim the month of April 2024 an observance of National Donate Life Month,” Mayor Conger announced.

Don Kimberley accepted the proclamation from Conger. He then told his story of how he needed a liver transplant. Ever since then, he has moved to Jackson and has dedicated his time to spreading awareness of the need for more donors.

“There’s over 100,000 folks waiting on a transplant list for some organ, or skin, or eyes, or tendons, whatever we can harvest that can go to help somebody live a full, complete life,” Kimberley said.

2023 was a record breaking year for the number of donors served and lives saved at the Jackson-Madison County General Hospital.

Byron Elam, the external affairs coordinator with Tennessee Donor Services, talks about what a great year it was.

“Particularly in Jackson, Tennessee, we served, right here at the Jackson-Madison County General Hospital, we served 26 donors,” Elam said. “As a result of the gift that those donors gave, we were able to save 56 lives.”

More than 500 donors were served in the State of Tennessee last year.

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