Letter to the Editor: BC Circuit Clerk Melissa Cardwell

Tue, 11/18/2014 - 6:40am — Diane Dyer

Dear Editor,

In I992 the Circuit Clerks of Kentucky recognized the tragedy of 18 people dying every day waiting for an organ transplant yet Kentuckians were not aware of what they could do to save lives. The Association of Circuit Court Clerks supported legislation that would allow every person obtaining a Kentucky driver’s license or identification card an opportunity to donate $1.00 to raise awareness about organ donation in Kentucky. These $1.00 donations go into a Trust-the Kentucky Circuit Court Clerk’s Trust for Life.

Since that time more than $8 million dollars have been raised, one dollar at a time, to increase awareness about organ donation. That money is used to make the public aware that more than 990 adults and children in Kentucky are waiting for a life-saving transplant; that over 124,000 people in the United States are on the waiting list; that 18 people die every day waiting for an organ transplant. It helps to provide information to the public like the oldest organ donor in Kentucky was 84 years and she saved three lives. Each dollar donated helps save lives.

Your $1.00 donations add up. In fact, they are added each month by the Trust for Life and a report is generated showing the percentage of people who donated and joined the registry. In October 2014, out of 282 Butler Countians who were issued a driver’s license or identification card, 158 donated $1.00. That’s 56% which put Butler County in the TOP 25 in the Commonwealth – out of 120 counties!!! Butler County ranked 48th in the state for names added to the registry, with 4,321 in October. Help Butler County move into “The Green” (50.1% of county registered) by joining the organ donor registry today.

We may be a small county, but what we lack in quantity-we more than make up in QUALITY, as we’ve been ranked as one of the MOST GIVING counties in the United States! Thank you, Butler County. Once again your generosity comes shining through. I’m so proud to serve as your clerk!

Melissa Cardwell

Your Butler County Circuit Clerk

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