Organ & Tissue Donors Honored During Rose Ceremony in Hot Springs

For the first time in two years, Hot Springs hosted its annual rose ceremony honoring organ and tissue donors. The ceremony had been postponed since 2019 because of COVID-19.

Almost 70 people attended the ceremony, including families of donors, Hot Springs coworkers and Arkansas Organ Recovery Agency coworkers. Chaplain Shane Robertson opened the ceremony with a prayer and Teresa Lambert, Vice-President of Patient Care Services in Hot Springs, welcomed the crowd. 

During the event, 11 donor families were recognized with a rose, which is a replica of the rose placed in the Rose Dedication Garden on the Donate Life Float that appeared in the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California on January 1.

Each dedicated rose is placed in a vial that honors donors and carries a unique message of love, hope and remembrance. The thousands of roses create the Dedication Garden that is a featured design element on the Donate Life Float each year.

After the ceremony, the group walked to the hallway outside of the ICU for the unveiling of the pictures of the donors on the Donor Wall. Trisha Nicholas, SICU Manager, and Sheila Clemens, MICU Manager, spoke about the gift of life with donation.

For pictures from the event, click here.