PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On Friday, November 20, junior featherweight boxer Francisco "Paco" Rodriguez received a fatal blow to the head during a title bout in Philadelphia. He was rushed to Hahnemann Hospital, and after all efforts to save his life were conducted, he was declared brain dead on Sunday.

Gift of Life Donor Program -- the nonprofit organ procurement organization (OPO) serving eastern Pennsylvania, southern New Jersey and Delaware -- was contacted by the hospital as part of standard clinical procedures to determine if Francisco could be an organ donor. A transplant coordinator along with hospital staff met with his family, where they generously chose to donate Francisco's organs. A brave decision in light of such a sad event, the young boxer was able to donate seven organs to five individuals. One of those was directed towards his own uncle in Chicago who was in need of a life-saving kidney transplant.

The other recovered organs were allocated to critically-ill patients in the Gift of Life region and in other parts of the country. Gift of Life cannot discuss any details about who the individual recipients are, to protect their privacy. It should be noted that organs are allocated according to the national system, the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), and generally matched with those who are in the most urgent need of transplant.

Gift of Life expresses its sincerest condolences to the Rodriguez family, and thanks them for their "act of love" in giving others a second chance of life. Families who say "yes" to organ donation -- like the Rodriguez's -- make an extraordinary decision in the presence of a sudden tragedy. We are humbled by their decision and admire their courage to give the gift of life, which gives hope to other families of the more than 6,000 local patients waiting organ transplants, and more than 104,000 patients waiting nationwide.

Even though his life was tragically cut short, Francisco's legacy will carry on, through the lives of the five individuals who got a second chance. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, the families of those recipients will be able to celebrate the holiday with their loved one, grateful to Francisco and his family for their generous decision.

In its 35 years as the region's organ donor program, Gift of Life has saved the lives of more than 28,000 organ transplant recipients. Thanks to the support of those donors and their families, Gift of Life coordinates more organ donations than any other region in the United States,

For more information about organ and tissue donation, contact Gift of Life at 1-800-DONORS-1, or visit our website, www.donors1.org. You can also now add the donor designation online - just follow the links on the Gift of Life homepage for each of the three states in this region.

SOURCE Gift of Life Donor Program

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http://www.donors1.org