by Matt Birkbeck
Pocono Record Writer

STROUDSBURG - The number of people waiting for organ transplants gets bigger every year, and one local group is raising awareness.

John Dougan and Howard Kindred of Northeastern Pennsylvania Transplant Support Group, Inc, told the Monroe County commissioners on Wednesday that nearly 1,000 people in this region are waiting for some kind of organ transplant. And in some cases the wait is longer than two years.

"I'd like to see others be given what I was given," said Dougan, who received a heart transplant in 1996. As part of Transplant Candidate, Recipient and Donor Family Week, the commissioners presented Dougan and Kindred with citations, applauding them for their work in the community.

Kindred is also a transplant recipient, having received a new liver in 1996. Both men say they are fit and health and if not for the kindness of others, they wouldn't be here today. "A lot of families need to be made aware that a family member may have filled out a donor card," says Dougan.

More than 75,000 people nationwide are waiting for an organ or tissue transplant. To help create awareness, the NEPATSG is holding a donor walk on Saturday, April 21st beginning at the East Stroudsburg South High School and ending at the Monroe County Courthouse. Registration begins that morning at 10:30 a.m.

For more information call 570-223-2833.

This story appeared on page C3, Thursday, April 5, 2001 in the Pocono Record.