Newark residents gathered at Vailsburg Park for NJ Sharing Network’s Live Healthy & Move community event on August 23. Under sunny skies, attendees enjoyed lively music, free health screenings, interactive fitness programs, and family-friendly games. The event served a dual purpose: providing a day of fun while raising awareness about the lifesaving power of organ and tissue donation. The event also featured a Back-to-School Drive, which provided school supplies to dozens of local K-12 students.
NJ Sharing Network, the non-profit organization responsible for recovering donated organs and tissue in the Garden State, works year-round with community partners to improve residents’ health and wellness. The Live Healthy & Move events aim to encourage healthy lifestyle choices that support long-term wellness.
E. Denise Peoples, a Newark resident and Senior Manager of Community Services at NJ Sharing Network, is a double-lung transplant recipient. She leads these events and promotes the organization’s mission in local schools, faith-based organizations, and community associations. She understands the importance of raising awareness about organ and tissue donation. “Live Healthy & Move is one of the many ways our NJ Sharing Network team shows appreciation and gives back to the communities we serve,” Peoples said. “These events create meaningful opportunities for our team members, volunteers, and supporters to engage directly with local residents. We were thrilled to bring this popular family event back to Newark thanks to the generous support of our community partners.”
The event held special meaning, as August is National Minority Donor Awareness Month. This is a time to honor the generosity of multicultural organ and tissue donors and their families. It also emphasizes the ongoing need for greater donor registration within diverse communities.
According to United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), nearly 4,000 New Jersey residents are waiting for a lifesaving transplant, and 67% are people of color. One organ and tissue donor can save eight lives and enhance the lives of more than 75 people.
“Within our communities of color, we have all experienced how health issues such as hypertension, diabetes and kidney failure have impacted those around us – our mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, friends, and neighbors. That is why there is a greater need than ever for transplants among our ethnic minorities,” Peoples added.
To learn more, get involved, and join the National Donate Life Registry as an organ and tissue donor, visit www.NJSharingNetwork.org.
