“Roses of Hope” remembers Indiana organ donors

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – IU Health and the Indiana Donor Network remembered organ donors in a special ceremony Tuesday.

“Roses of Hope” honors the legacy of Central Indiana donors by giving roses to patients who are currently awaiting transplants at IU Health.

The ceremony also included a floragraph of 19-year-old organ and tissue donor Jennifer Spurgeon.

A floragraph is a picture made out of spices, seeds and flowers.

Spurgeon died in an apartment fire in 2009. Her organs saved three people, including a 17-year-old boy.

“I’d like to try and get rid of the transplant list that’s there. 18 people get added to that list every day. 22 people die every day because it doesn’t come in time or when it does they are so sick, the transplant can’t take place,” said Rhonda Berger, Spurgeon’s mother. “We need to educate people, let them know how this all works.”

Spurgeon’s floragraph will be featured on the 2016 Donate Life float during the Rose Parade in Pasadena, California on New Year’s Day.

Her family will represent the state at the parade.