Published on April 24, 2025
Owensboro Health Raises Donate Life Flag in Ceremony Honoring Organ Donors and Recipients
Owensboro Health Regional Hospital joined with Network for Hope on Thursday morning to host the Donate Life Flag Raising Ceremony in honor of National Donate Life Month. Held outside the hospital’s main entrance, the event recognized the lifesaving impact of organ, eye and tissue donation while paying tribute to donors and their families.
Chief Medical Officer Dr. Dufrayne welcomed attendees with a powerful reminder of the hospital’s mission. “To heal the sick and improve the health of the communities we serve—that mission lives on in every story of donation,” he said. In 2024, Owensboro Health supported 8 organ donors, resulting in 22 transplants, and more than 20 tissue and eye donors whose generosity touched countless lives.
Representing Network for Hope, Andi Johnson emphasized the symbolic power of the Donate Life flag. “This flag represents unity, remembrance and hope,” Johnson said. “We are here to celebrate the heroes who gave the gift of life, and to thank those who make these moments of healing possible.”
The crowd was visibly moved by guest speaker Lynn Carter, who received a kidney and pancreas transplant just before her 50th birthday. “Dialysis had taken a toll on my life,” Carter shared. “But thanks to a donor’s gift, I was able to return to work, travel some and fully participate in life again.”
The ceremony concluded with a prayer and the raising of the Donate Life flag, led by Owensboro Health’s pastoral care team and security. As the flag rose, it served as a beacon of hope—and a call to continue supporting donation in our communities.
To learn more or to register as an organ donor, visit www.DonateLifeKY.org.
About Owensboro Health
Owensboro Health is a nonprofit health system with a mission to heal the sick and to improve the health of the communities it serves in Kentucky and Indiana. The system includes Owensboro Health Regional Hospital, nationally recognized for design, architecture and engineering; Owensboro Health Muhlenberg Community Hospital; Owensboro Health Twin Lakes Medical Center; the Owensboro Health Medical Group comprised of over 350 providers at more than 30 locations; three outpatient Healthplex facilities, a certified medical fitness facility, the Healthpark; a weight management program, and the Mitchell Memorial Cancer Center.
On average each year, we have more than 19,000 inpatient admissions, deliver 2,000 babies and provide the region’s only Level III NICU. Owensboro Health physicians perform nearly 33,000 surgical procedures, including nearly 150 open-heart surgeries. Our physicians and staff have 90,000 Emergency Department visits and more than 1.25 million outpatient visits annually. Visit our home page for more information.