Baptist and Reflector
ADAMSVILLE — Long before his name went on the National Organ Transplant List in October of 2018, Chad Ball advocated organ donation.
Ball, pastor of First Baptist Church, Adamsville, was diagnosed with FSGS, a leading cause of kidney failure, in 2006. Shortly after his diagnosis, he signed up to be an organ donor, not knowing if he would ever need one himself.
Now that he is in need of a kidney, Ball is even more aware of the importance of organ donation.
“We should be willing to let our death mean more than just our body ceasing to function,” he observed.
The need for donors is real. As of January 2019, there are more than 113,000 men, women and children on the national transplant waiting list, according to organdonor.gov.
Other statistics worth noting from organ donor.gov include:
• 20 people die each day waiting for a transplant.
• 36,528 organ transplants were performed in 2018.
• Though 95 percent of U.S. adults support organ donation, only 58 percent are actualy signed up as donors.
• Every 10 minutes, another person is added to the waiting list.
In addition, Donate Life America reports that 80 percent of patients on the national waiting list need a kidney while 12 percent require a liver.
For Ball and other Christians, donor transplants go beyond meeting the physical needs of donor recipients.
“Our organ could mean giving someone an opportunity to hear the gospel one more time or for those of us who are saved, it could allow us more opportunities to share the gospel,” Ball said.
For more information on the living donor program, visit vanderbilthealth.com/transplant/50306. B&R
