Bryan's Blog

Just opened an interesting e-mail from the ‘Live On. Ride On.' campaign. It calls for motorcyclists to be organ donors. Calls them ‘heroes.’ It states that motorcyclists can live on and ride on by donating life. This particular program is aimed at motorcyclists in Central and Southeastern Ohio, but it doesn’t have to stop there. There is a need for ‘heroes’ everywhere.

I have signed up to be an anatomical donor. I’ve got a Class C license with a big M for motorcycle endorsement and a D under restrictions indicating that I am a donor. If tragedy did strike, then I hope that solace could be found in the fact that another might live. It’s a big decision, and I know that the thought of somebody poking and prodding around in your body after your dead doesn’t appeal to everybody. But I encourage all riders to think about it. What if someone you loved needed a transplant in order to live?

Motorcyclists might be a wild bunch, but we’re also a philanthropic lot. I don’t know how many poker runs I’ve seen to raise money for one cause or another. Signing up as a donor is another way to step up to the plate. It’s cliché, but you can’t take your internal organs with you, so if I die unexpectedly and my heart can keep a mother or father, son or daughter alive so that they can continue enjoying their family, then take it with my blessing. And let them know it came from a biker, so I can help shed some of the negative stereotyping we get.

Motorcyclists are a brave lot. We wouldn’t ride bikes at breakneck speeds on streets crowded with cars, otherwise. So next time you’re at the DMV renewing your motorcycle license, think about what I said, be brave, and sign up to be a donor. Hopefully it will never come into play. But it’s the last unselfish act you might do.

Here's a little story from the 'Live On. Ride On.' campaign courtesy of the Lifeline of Ohio website that I'd like to share:

"John Price has been riding motorcycles since he was 12 years old and had always been a registered organ and tissue donor. John saved four lives through organ donation after complications of a motorcycle accident in 2002. His family had the opportunity to meet his heart recipient who told them that when he woke up from his transplant surgery, he remembered dreaming about riding a motorcycle with a man he didn't know, even though he had never ridden a motorcycle before. John still lives on through his organ recipients."