Liver transplant recipient, Wesley Mallicone hands out roses at the Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center Rose Parade Donor Remembrance Ceremony Sunday, February 11, 2018. individuals representing those donors received a personalized certificate, a replica of the actual rose and vial placed on the Donate Life America float symbolizing their loved one’s gift.
Courtesy of Penn State
HERSHEY, Pa. — Every year, Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center hosts an event to honor the families whose loved ones gave the gift of life. Ninety-four individual donors between July 1, 2016, and June 30, 2017, did exactly that. On Sunday, Feb. 11, representatives from more than 20 of those families turned out to receive the heartfelt thanks of many – including a transplant recipient.
“They are all still alive in their own special way,” expressed Wesley Mallicone, who himself received a liver transplant in August 2011. Diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease as a teen, Mallicone’s health progressively deteriorated. By the time he turned 34, he says he wouldn’t have survived without a transplant — or a willing donor. “This selfless act has allowed me to live my life, and your loved ones are each making a difference in their own special way,” he added.
Attendees were moved to tears as one by one, their loved one’s name was called at the Rose Parade Organ Donor Remembrance Ceremony where each accepted a personalized certificate, a Donate Life pin and a colorful rose in a replica vial from the Donate Life float commemorating their family member and their decision to become a donor. The event was co-hosted by the Gift of Life Donor Program, the regional nonprofit organ procurement organization that serves Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.